Onion Bhaji (Better Than Restaurant)
Updated: March 14, 2025, By Swasthi
These Onion Bhaji are crisp on the outside, light and fluffy inside. Easy to make, delicious, addictive and can satiate your crispy snack cravings! These are best served with a green chutney like cilantro chutney or mint chutney. In this post I share the recipe to make Onion Bhaji that actually taste better than the restaurant and a new way to make your green chutney. I also have expert tips and troubleshooting sections for beginners.
About Onion Bhaji
Onion Bhaji are Indian fritters similar to pakoda but with a fluffier texture inside. While pakoda are crisp and crunchy, Bhaji are crisp on the outer surface and fluffier inside. To make pakoda, we make a tight mixture that’s somewhat like a sticky dough. But while making Onion Bhaji we make a slightly loose mixture that’s like a super thick batter of dropping consistency.
Though the mixture is slightly loose (compared to the pakora dough), this batter produces crispy bhaji due to the higher amount of rice flour.
Table of contents
This kind of fritters are more common in the restaurants and are loved by a lot of people for the crisp yet fluffy texture. You can always make Onion Bhaji with just 5 basic ingredients – onions, gram flour, chilies, salt and oil. However a few more handy ingredients like rice flour or corn starch, spices and herbs take them to the next level.
Ingredients & Substitutes
- Onions – Originally in India, bhajis are always made with red onions. But you will find these being made with yellow/brown onions outside India. Yellow onions impart sweeter tones to the bhajis. They have higher amount of moisture in them (compared to the red onions), so be cautious and add water only if required.
- Gram flour – It is also known as Besan & is made from the desi variety of black chickpeas. The legume is split , skinned and ground to make gram flour. It is different from chickpea flour which is made from garbanzo beans. However you may use chickpea flour but your fritters will be less aromatic. Substitute with wheat flour, sorghum flour or all-purpose flour if you can’t eat gram flour.
- Rice flour is what makes these onion bhaji crisp. It is made from raw rice and is easily available in the Asian stores. Use rice flour from any Indian brand or flour meant for Indian cooking. You may substitute with corn starch but the results vary.
- Chilies – I prefer to use chilies in 2 forms, fresh and dried form (ground). The fresh green chilies add heat and impart their unique flavor. You may use Indian or Thai green chilies or serrano peppers. Ground chili/ powder adds another layer of pungent flavor and heat. You may substitute the powder with flakes or freshly cracked black pepper.
Special spices and herbs
- Spices – carom seeds known as ajwain are crucial to any gram flour fritters made in Indian cuisine. These seeds aid digestion, add a gentle heat and flavor to the Onion Bhaji. But you may substitute with crushed fennel seeds if you love them. Coriander powder and garam masala are my favorite spices. They flavor your fritters subtly without overpowering.
- Fresh ginger and garlic are the next best spices to add in your bhaji batter. Omit them if you don’t like but the flavor of fried ginger and garlic is amazing here.
- Herbs like coriander leaves, mint leaves and curry leaves are most commonly used in Indian cuisine. Use what you have or like. I add curry leaves and mint in my pakoda but use coriander leaves in Bhajis.
- Leavening agent – Though the recipe works without a leavening agent, I prefer to add a very tiny amount for that extra crisp, lighter and fluffier texture inside. Without this your fritters may turn denser.
Photo Guide
How to make Onion Bhaji (Stepwise Photos)
1. These fritters are best served hot after frying, so make your chutney first and keep it ready. If you don’t want to make this, jump to the next section – step 3. Please note that you need a really small grinder for this chutney else double or triple the ingredients to make in a blender. To a small grinder jar add,
Make chutney
- 2 cups (60 grams) cilantro/ coriander leaves (discard the mature stalks + you may add 10 mint leaves if you have)
- 1 green chili (Indian/Thai chili or serrano pepper)
- 1 medium garlic clove
- ¼ inch peeled ginger (optional)
- ¾ teaspoon roasted cumin powder or seeds
- ¼ teaspoon salt (add more to adjust)
- ½ to 1 tablespoon lemon juice (I also used ½ teaspoon lemon zest)
- 2 tablespoons avocado (if you add more it tastes like a avocado dip). If you don’t like avocado, add a piece of bread or roasted peanuts and a tbsp of water or yogurt
2. Grind to a thick chutney, adding water only as required. Do not add a lot, it can make your chutney runny. Taste test to add more salt, lemon or chili. Cover and refrigerate until served.
Make bhaji
3. Wash and peel one medium to large yellow/brown or red onion. Cut and discard the basal plate. Slice them uniformly thin and separate the layers. They should make about 2 cups, weighing 200 grams. It is essential to follow the ingredient quantities precisely for best results. If you have lesser onions, slice another small one to make 2 cups/200 grams.
4. Add them to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle half teaspoon salt. Mix well to coat the onions with salt and squeeze them gently a few times. Rest aside for 15 to 20 mins.
5. Meanwhile prep the following ingredients
- Fine chop ½ to 1 green chili. Omit or deseed for low heat option
- Peel, grate/ mince or press 3 medium garlic cloves to make 1 tablespoon garlic (omit if using ginger garlic paste)
- Peel and grate or mince 1 inch fresh ginger root to make 1 tablespoon ginger (or use 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste)
- Fine chop 3 to 4 sprigs of coriander leaves with tender stalks to make ¼ cup fine chopped (discard the mature stalks). If you don’t have use any other fresh herb of choice.
6. After 10 mins, you will see the onions have released some of the moisture. At this stage, pour high smoke point oil to a deep fry pan and begin to heat on a medium flame. (I use 1½ cups steam refined organic coconut oil). Avoid unrefined or cold pressed oils because they begin to smoke up.
7. To the same mixing bowl, add
- ¾ cup besan – 85 grams gram flour
- ⅓ cup rice flour – 45 grams (or substitute with ¼ cup corn starch/ white corn flour)
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder or flakes (use Kashmiri for low heat or high heat chili for high heat or double)
- ¾ teaspoon garam masala (or substitute with cumin powder or chaat masala)
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (or ½ tablespoon coarsely crushed seeds if you prefer)
- ½ teaspoon carom seeds / ajwain/ fennel seeds (lightly crushed coarsely or both, omit if you don’t have)
- ⅛ teaspoon soda bicarbonate – baking soda (use for lighter bhajis)
8. Mix together to coat the onions with all the dry ingredients evenly, to form a super thick batter of dropping consistency. If it is too dry and crumbly, add 1 tablespoon water and mix. You won’t pour a lot of water at one time. If your onions are super juicy, you may not need water at all.
9. I used only 2 tablespoons water in total but this may be different for you. Be careful especially if you are using yellow onions as they have lot of moisture in them. They continue to release juices for quite long even after making the batter. Taste test and adjust salt and spices to your preference.
Frying Onion Bhaji
10. Test the oil if it is hot enough. Drop a small portion of the batter to hot oil. It should sizzle and come to the surface without turning brown. This means it is at the right temperature. Regulate your flame to medium. Pick up ¾ tablespoon portions of batter to your fingers and slide to the hot oil. Do not shape them. Alternately use a pair of spoons, one to pick up the batter and the other to help slide it down to oil.
11. Avoid overcrowding or touching them for at least 2 to 3 mins. Later stir them and fry on a medium heat until crisp and golden. When they are done, you will see the bubbles begin to reduce. (I like to fry mine further on a low heat during the last 1 to 2 mins for extra crisp texture, but be cautious they can turn brown and burn quickly)
12. Remove to a steel rack or colander. I fried in 3 batches. Once done, refry them on a medium heat for 1 to 2 mins, until extra crisp.
Serve Onion Bhaji immediately with green chutney or Mint Chutney and Masala Chai.
Expert Tips
- It is essential to draw out the juice from onions before making the batter. So resting onions with salt is essential.
- Adding too much liquid is going to make your onion Bhaji softer/ soggy. So use the right amount.
- Make the batter only when you are ready to fry. Heat the oil and simultaneously make the batter.
- Onion Bhaji are not made super spicy and hot. This recipe produces moderately hot and spicy fritters. If you want you may double all the spices.
- Avoid reusing the fried oil and discard it properly.
- If you are making this recipe in larger amounts, even 2x or 3x, mix the onions with salt and leave aside. Divide and make the batter only in batches as you need. Do not let the batter sit for long because the onions will begin to release juices and loosen the batter (which means soggy bhajis). Here is a picture of the leftover batter after frying 2 batches. To fix you may add little more flour (both in the same proportions). Adding too much can affect the flavor.
Don’ts & Troubleshooting
- The only reason your onion bhaji turns softer or soggy is due to excess moisture. If you are in doubt, fry only one bhaji to see how it works. If softer, then add more flour in the same 1:2 ratios to fix that.
- Never shape the batter else you will get bhajis in the form of lumps. Slide portions of batter gently either with your fingers or use a spoon. I prefer my fingers.
- Perfect onion bhaji comes by practice. So don’t worry if you don’t get them right at the first attempt.
- Frying on a medium heat is essential, else your fritters will brown without cooking inside.
- Avoid adding too much leavening agent else your onion bhajis will turn darker in color before they are fully cooked.
Recipe Card
Onion Bhaji Recipe (Better than Restaurant)
For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card
Ingredients (US cup = 240ml )
- 200 grams (2 cups, 1 medium) onion sliced (yellow/brown or red, read notes)
- 1 green chili (fine chopped, optional, omit for low heat)
- 1 tablespoon ginger (minced/grated or use 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste)
- 1 tablespoon garlic (minced/grated, omit if using gg paste)
- ¼ cup coriander leaves (fine chopped)
- ¾ cup (85 grams) besan (gram flour)
- ⅓ cup (45 grams) rice flour (or use ¼ cup corn starch)
- ½ to ¾ teaspoon sea salt (adjust to taste)
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda (optional)
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder or flakes (use Kashmiri for low heat or high heat chili for high heat or double)
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (or ½ tablespoon coarsely crushed seeds if you prefer)
- ½ teaspoon carom seeds / ajwain/ fennel seeds (lightly crushed coarsely or both, omit if you don’t have)
- ¾ teaspoon garam masala (or substitute with cumin powder or chaat masala)
- 1 to 3 tablespoons water (use only as required)
- high smoke point oil to deep fry – about 1½ cups (I use steam refined coconut oil)
Instructions
Preparation
- Slice onions thin, of uniform thickness and add to a large mixing bowl. Add salt and mix well, squeezing gently to release the juices. Rest aside for a minimum of 15 to 20 mins, while you prepare the rest.
- On a medium flame, heat oil in a deep pan for deep frying.
- Meanwhile add all the ingredients except water and mix well with your hand for form a thick batter. If the batter is too dry and crumbly, sprinkle 1 tablespoon water and mix. (See images in the post for consistency)
- I used 2 tablespoons in total. You may need more or less depending on the freshness or kind of onions.
How to make Onion Bhaji
- Test if the oil is hot – drop a small portion of the batter to the hot oil. It should sizzle and rise to the surface without turning brown. If it sinks and not come up, it means the oil is not hot enough.
- Take ¾ tablespoon portions of batter to your fingers and slide to the hot oil. Do not shape them. Alternately use a pair of spoons, one to pick up the batter and the other to help slide it down to the hot oil.
- Avoid overcrowding. Do not touch them for 2 to 3 mins as they can disintegrate.
- Fry them on a medium heat for 3 mins. Stir occasionally to fry until crisp and light golden. Remove to a cooling rack or a steel colander. Fry the rest of the batter in batches. I fried mine in 3 batches.
- I like to refry mine for 1 to 2 mins for a extra crisp texture.
- Onion bhajis are best served hot, immediately as they begin to lose their crispness when they sit.
Notes
- It is very important to follow the onion to flour ratio correctly, for best results.
- It is essential to draw out the moisture from onions before making the batter. Else your batter will become runny while it is waiting to be fried.
- Adding too much water will make your bhajis softer.
- If your batter is dry and crumbly your bhajis can turn out harder.
NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)
© Swasthi’s Recipes
About Swasthi
I’m Swasthi Shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthi’s Recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills. More about me
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