Cilantro-Chickpea Fritters (Kottimeera Vadalu) (Not Deep-Fried)

Delicious Cilantro Fritters nested in aromatic Cilantro leaves

These are some yummy fritters I tried recently on one evening. They are instant (no grinding as I used canned chickpeas) and are ready in minutes. And the good thing is they aren’t deep-fried. Inspired by them, her and her I made these using the appam pan and it was a success. It took very little oil and turned out perfectly yummy. 

An Update: I used canned chickpeas for my recipe. If you wish to use dry chickpeas (garbanzo beans) soak them overnight before grinding. No need to boil or cook them! 

Ingredients: A bunch of Cilantro Leaves (Kottimeera) 1 can of Chickpeas, drained and washed 3 or 4 green Chilies Some Oil Salt Note: Chickpeas can be replaced with chana dal (Bengal Gram, Pachi Senaga pappu) soaked for at least 6 hours. Preparation: Grind cilantro + chickpeas + green chilies together into a thick paste adding very little water. Don’t worry if it gets too watery. Add little rice flour to the batter to make it thick. Adjust salt. Heat the appam pan and pour 1 tsp of oil in each groove. When the oil is hot, carefully drop spoonful of the batter (or just shape batches of batter into small patties and drop by hand) in each groove. Keep the flame on medium-low. After some time, when they turn golden brown on one side, carefully flip them to fry on the other side. Use a skewer (I used bamboo skewer) or a fork to flip the fritters. When both sides turn golden brown, transfer them to a paper towel to remove any excess oil. Enjoy these delicious, crunchy fritters with ketchup or any other desired chutney.