Typhoon Kompasu

A second typhoon in four days, cool air, windy conditions, the observatory issued a typhoon alert and the government asked everyone to return home just at the time when people crave onion pakoras!

Fortunately there were Made in India onions in the basket awaiting their fate; the local onions are too watery to make good crispy pakoras.

As the pakoras bubbled away in the hot oil they seemed to reveal their secrets. As soon as a moist blob of onions, gram flour, salt and spices plunges into hot oil, the starches and proteins on its outer surface undergo the Maillard Reaction and turn a fancy golden brown with a crispy texture. At the same time the water content on the surface turns to vapour and creates a protective sheath of sorts around the pakora that keeps away the oil, thereby slowing down the browning of the surface. Now the insides heat up and start getting steam cooked, the steam escaping through the surface of the oil as bubbles.

If the oil isn't hot enough, the vapour doesn't form a protective sheath, the oil gets absorbed in the pakora and what we have is a greasy mess.

If the oil is too hot, the pakora turns to carbon on the outside, and the insides remain uncooked.

When a cooked pakora is taken out of oil, the insides are still steaming and the steam keeps escaping from the surface. As it cools down the crispy exterior absorbs the steam and becomes soggy. So it's best to have them hot.

Perfect pakoras are thus a complex function of temperature, moisture and right timing.

Unfortunately, intellectualising pakoras is never a good idea. It is too time consuming and it can lead to pakoras turning to carbon in the oil, or it can turn perfectly hot and crisp pakoras into a chewy and soggy mess.

So, it's best to keep the brain at bay when making fresh pakoras and eating them, while staying at home and witnessing nature's fury safely.