I am so glad I bought a copy of Monisha Bharadwaj’s latest book, The Indian Cookery Course – a truly comprehensive guide to Indian cooking.

Onion bhajias are fun and easy. We made them on the Indian Street Food course I did with Monisha in September. Gram flour, made from chickpeas, is available at Harvest, a health food shop in Bath.

Ajowan seeds came from my first online shop from Red Rickshaw. Ajowan (also spelt ajwain or ajwan) has a slightly peppery taste with a hint of oregano and anise. It is commonly used in Indian cooking and often found sprinkled on naan bread. As well as being an early source of thymol, ajowan has all sorts of excellent medical properties.

½ tsp chilli powder
Pinch of ajowan, either ground or crushed seeds
2 medium onions
100g gram flour
Generous pinch of salt
Vegetable oil for frying

A useful tip from Monisha, learnt on her course, was how to cut thin slices of onion. Start by preparing the onions. Take off the tops, bottoms and outer skin. Cut the onion in half from top to bottom and take out the triangle of flesh above where the root had been. Place an onion half, flat side down, on a board and cut thinly the way of the grain. To cut the final quarter of the onion, turn it 90° so that a bigger flat side is on the board, and cut to the end.

In a large mixing bowl, put in the gram flour, salt and spices. Using cold water, mix to a paste the consistency of thin cream.

Heat about 1.5 cm depth of oil in a deep sided frying pan.

Putting in only enough onion slices for each batch into the paste, turn them so they are well coated. Using a slotted spoon, take fritter portions of onions from the batter and place them in the hot oil. They should sizzle.

Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until crisp and golden. Transfer onto kitchen paper to drain and keep warm as more batches are prepared.

Serve with chutney