Malabar Banana Fritters (Pulivaral)

My mothers Signature recipe for the tradtional Malabar Banana Fritters. They are soft and delcious. Very easy to make.. you just need to get the batter to a perfect balance. Read on.

The Recipe Intro page has Video (in Malayalam). Check it out.

Ingredients:

Method:

1. Add the grated jaggery to a saucepan.
2. To this add  2-3  Tbsp water and melt the jaggery (Add only enough water to help melt the jaggery, we need to keep the liquid content to a minimum).
3. Stir constantly till it has completely melted ( dissolved).
4. If your jaggery seems to have any impurities, make sure to strain it. Sometimes, no straining is required.
5. Once cool, you will notice that the melted jaggery has hardened a bit.
6. Add 2 Tbsp coconut milk to loosen this. Stir well till mixed thoroughly. Mix firmly, to return the hardened jaggery to a soft state. (Not to be reheated).
7. Peel and add the banana into a large bowl. To begin with, let’s add two bananas ( we may need to add one more later).
8. Mash this lightly, keeping a few small chunks for texture.
9. Add the melted jaggery-coconut milk mixture into this, along with the egg and salt.
10. Put the baking soda into a small cup with 1 tsp coconut milk and stir so that there are no lumps.
11. Add this to the bowl ingredients. Mix well with fork or whisk.
12. Now we will add 1 heaped Tbsp each of the rice flour (fine) and wheat flour at a time, stirring the batter in between each addition (of both flours in equal quantity), to get the right texture.
13. When I added up to 4 Tbsp each of the flours, I found the batter was still too runny, so I added the reserved banana. Mash and mix it through. (This is because the ratio of   {Banana : Flour} should be balanced. Too much flour compared to the banana, and our fritters will burn quickly and also lack taste.)
14. So, I ended up adding 5 heaped Tbsp each of Fine rice flour and Wheat flour for 3 Bananas.
15. At this point, do a taste test and make sure the batter is nice and sweet. It should be quite sweet or the fritters won’t be tasty. If you find the batter needs to be sweetened, add some more fine quality grated jaggery or brown sugar. (Do not add any more liquid). The sugar should be free of impurities or the fritters will have a sandy – bite/texture.
16. Heat coconut oil in a wok for deep frying. Oil is hot enough when a tiny bit of batter floats up instantly to the top.
17. Either pipe the traditionally shaped fritters or drop spoonfuls to make ball-shaped fritters, into the hot oil. (Refer video).
18. 30 seconds after adding to the oil, turn them over occasionally and fry on medium flame till they are dark golden brown in colour. Drain thoroughly to remove oil and place in colander lined with a paper towel.
19. Serve the soft fluffy banana fritters with tea.

Malabar Banana Fritters (Pulivaral)

Notes:

• Jaggery is traditional cane sugar consumed in South Asia, Southeast Asia and some other countries in Asia and the Americas. It is a concentrated product of cane juice and can vary from golden brown to dark brown in colour. Other forms of Jaggery are made from Date or Palm sap also.
• As the size of bananas varies, you need to adjust the ratio of flours: banana, You need to adjust accordingly but makes sure you are not using too much flour, as it will make the fritters burn easily and also lack taste.
• The batter should be quite sweet when tasted, or the end result will not be as tasty.

Key Ingredients: Banana, Rice Flour, Wheat Flour, Egg, Jaggery (Cane Sugar ), Baking Soda, Coconut oil, Salt.

EAT AND TELL!!!

Let us know if you tried –    Malabar Banana Fritters (Pulivaral)