There is nothing like the nostalgic feeling of sitting in a small village tea shop in Kerala, with a warm glass of tea and a bonda as a snack. It’s not easy to recreate the tea shop, but I can recreate the tea and the bonda. I searched for many years to recreate that perfect bonda. Finally, I found a recipe from a tea shop owner from Kerala. I tested it in my kitchen over and over again. Then I gave it friends and family to taste, and they all loved it.
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 (6 oz) water
2 1/2 cups cooking oil
Cooking Directions
1. Mix all the ingredients until you get a sticky constancy and set aside for an hour.
2. Place a shallow frying pan on the stove over medium flame and heat the oil.
3. Rub the palm of your hand with cooking oil to prevent the batter from sticking.
4. Mix the batter again, and then make small balls with your hands. You can also use a spoon and scoop in the batter, but this may not create a round shape. Slowly place each of them into the oil. Make sure each ball dips entirely into the oil. If part of the dough is sticking out of the oil, the bonda will be out of shape. If you want that perfect shape for your bondas, it needs to be covered entirely in oil. If it is sticking out, you need to add more oil or make the size of your bonda smaller. Each dough will double in size. At this point, the bonda should stick out of the oil.
5. Turn the bonda over after a few minutes. Cook both sides of the bonda until it is golden brown.
3. Rub the palm of your hand with cooking oil to prevent the batter from sticking.
4. Mix the batter again, and then make small balls with your hands. You can also use a spoon and scoop in the batter, but this may not create a round shape. Slowly place each of them into the oil. Make sure each ball dips entirely into the oil. If part of the dough is sticking out of the oil, the bonda will be out of shape. If you want that perfect shape for your bondas, it needs to be covered entirely in oil. If it is sticking out, you need to add more oil or make the size of your bonda smaller. Each dough will double in size. At this point, the bonda should stick out of the oil.
5. Turn the bonda over after a few minutes. Cook both sides of the bonda until it is golden brown.
6. Remove the bonda from the oil. Wait few minutes for the bonda to cool down and enjoy.
