It’s hard NOT to love any ingredient when it’s fritter-fied. This version, inspired by traditional Indian flavors, stars chickpeas, which are mashed, then mixed with a light tempura batter flavored with curry spices and aromatics. They’re shallow-fried pancake-style until crispy, then paired with some of our favorite accompaniments: fluffy rice pilaf with spinach, pickled raisins (yes, you read that right!) and a drizzle of creamy garlic sauce on top. Now comes the most challenging part of the meal: stacking a little bit of everything on your fork at once to create the perfect bite!
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Produced in a facility that processes eggs, milk, fish, peanuts, sesame, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat.
1 unit
Chickpeas
82 g
Tempura Mix
(Contains Eggs, Milk, Wheat)
1 unit
Red Onion
1 tablespoon
Curry Powder
2 unit
Scallions
½ cup
Basmati Rice
2 tablespoon
Yogurt
(Contains Milk)
4 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains Milk)
1 unit
Lemon
1 clove
Garlic
1 ounce
Golden Raisins
2.5 ounce
Spinach
½ ounce
Cashews
(Contains Tree Nuts)
1 unit
Veggie Stock Concentrate
10 ounce
Chicken Breast Strips
1 teaspoon
Cooking Oil
1 tablespoon
Butter
(Contains Milk)
Salt
Pepper
• Wash and dry produce. • Halve, peel, and finely dice onion until you have 1 cup; mince remaining onion until you have 2 TBSP and set aside in a medium bowl for step 4. (For 4 servings, finely dice whole onion; mince diced onion until you have 4 TBSP.) Trim and thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens. Roughly chop spinach. Quarter lemon. Peel and mince garlic. Drain and rinse chickpeas.
• Melt 1 TBSP butter in a small pot over medium-high heat (use 2 TBSP butter and a medium pot for 4 servings). Add diced onion, scallion whites, cashews, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, 1 minute. • Stir in rice, stock concentrate, 3⁄4 cup water (1 1⁄2 cups for 4), and a big pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until rice is tender, 15-18 minutes. Turn off heat. • Add spinach. Cover until wilted, about 2 minutes; stir to combine.
• While rice cooks, place raisins in a small bowl (roughly chop any large raisins if necessary). Add juice from one lemon wedge (two wedges for 4 servings), a pinch of salt, and enough hot water to just cover. Set aside to pickle. • In a separate small bowl, combine sour cream, yogurt, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a pinch of garlic to taste. Add water 1 tsp at a time until mixture reaches a drizzling consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add chickpeas to bowl with minced onion. Mash chickpeas with a potato masher or fork until almost smooth. (It’s OK if there are still some larger pieces.) • Stir in tempura mix, scallion greens, remaining garlic, 1⁄3 cup water (2⁄3 cup for 4 servings), and 2 tsp curry powder (4 tsp for 4; be sure to measure) until evenly combined. Season with salt (we used 3⁄4 tsp; 1 1⁄2 tsp for 4) and pepper. TIP: Batter should be thick but not dry—add more water 1 TBSP at a time if necessary.
Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken or sausage and cook, stirring frequently, until browned and cooked through, 4-6 minutes. Turn off heat; transfer to a plate. Wipe out pan.
• Heat a 1⁄3-inch layer of oil in a large, heavy- bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot enough that a drop of batter sizzles when added to the pan, add 1⁄4-cup scoops of batter. (TIP: You may need to work in batches. Carefully drop your batter close to the oil to avoid splatter.) Cook until golden brown and crisp, 3-4 minutes per side. • Using a slotted spoon, transfer fritters to a paper-towel-lined plate. Season with a pinch of salt.
Use pan used for chicken or sausage here.
• Divide rice pilaf between plates and top with chickpea fritters. Drizzle with creamy garlic sauce and as many pickled raisins (draining first) as you like. Serve with any remaining lemon wedges on the side.
Top rice with chicken or sausage.