Matar Kachori

Matar kachori recipe. Matar ki kachori is a crisp, flaky fried pastry filled with a spicy pea filling. In Hindi matar means peas and Kachori is fried and puff pastry. They’re like spicy empanadas. A vegan recipe.
The matar kachori filling can be diversified from salty to sweet, from potatoes and peas to lentils and even onions. I will also post the other versions, my favorite being the khasta kachori where the filling is based on urad dal (black lentils). this recipe can also be called Khasta matar kachori because the outer dough is flaky and crisp.

Ingredients

For the Matar Kachori pastry

▢ 1 cup all-purpose flour, you can also use whole wheat flour or both flours in a half to half ratio
▢ 1 tablespoon of oil or ghee, I used sunflower oil
▢ ¼ cup of lukewarm water
▢ ¼ teaspoon baking powder
▢ ¼ teaspoon of salt or add as needed

For the Matar Kachori stuffing

▢ 1 cup peas, fresh or frozen
▢ ¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
▢ ¼ teaspoon of turmeric powder
▢ ½ teaspoon ground coriander
▢ ½ teaspoon ground fennel
▢ ½ teaspoon of chaat masala or add to taste
▢ ½ teaspoon of amchur powder (dry mango powder) or add to taste
▢ ½ teaspoon green chilli and ginger paste or crushed or minced green chili and ginger – use about ½ inch of ginger and ½ or 1 green chili, then crush them in a mortar and pestle
▢ ¼ teaspoon of cumin seeds
▢ 1 tablespoon of besan (gram flour or chickpea flour)
▢ 2 teaspoons of oil or ghee (clarified butter)
▢ salt as needed

For frying

▢ 2 to 3 cups of oil
Also Read: Burger Recipe | Vegetarian Burger

Instructions

Making pastry

1. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder. Add the oil and form a mixture similar to breadcrumbs.
2. Add water and form a tight dough.

Make the Matar Kachori stuffing

1. Boil or steam the peas. Crush them coarsely or semi-coarsely.
2. Heat the oil and brown the cumin. Then add the crushed ginger and green pepper.
3. Fry for a minute. Now add the dry spice powders and salt to it.
4. Stir and add the gram flour. Sauté 2-3 minutes.
5. Check the seasoning and add a little more spice powders or salt, if necessary.

Making Matar Kachori

1. Make 5 to 6 evenly sized balls from the dough. Roll into a 3 to 4 inch round on a sprinkled board.
2. Add a little stuffing in the center. Brush some water around the edges.
3. Gather all the edges and pinch them. Press the edges down below.
4. Roll into a 4 to 5 inch kachori. Make all the matar kachoris like these and keep them covered with a damp cloth.

Fry Matar Kachori

1. Now heat some oil in a kadai.
2. Over low to low-medium heat, fry the kachoris until they turn golden brown, flaky and crispy.
3. Remove them on paper tissues to drain excess oil.
4. Serve the hot/warm matar ki kachori with a coriander or tamarind chutney.