You can make Dakor na Gota in an instant when you’ve got a big batch of dakor na gota pre-mix. Last minute guests or fried food cravings? I’ve got you!

Homemade pre-mix for Indian fritters in a round wooden bowl. - 1

Note – This recipe has been updated from the archives – first published in October 2016. I’ve added new images and helpful content, the recipe remains the same.

My Mum grew up in India where pre-mix packets were easy to purchase. The problem – they didn’t taste great. So she studied the ingredients list, asked elders for the recipe and her and her Mum would make their own mix at home.

Here in the UK, you’ll find a few pre-mixes for Indian snacks but not many. Honestly, nothing beats the taste and freshness of homemade anyway! That’s why we try to keep our own mixes ready where ever possible – whether it’s Gujarati chai masala , goda masala or dabeli masala . Or of course, this dakor na gota mix.

Storage

I find that the pre-mix retains its freshness for 8-10 weeks when stored in an airtight container.

Ingredients & Recipe Details

Be sure to check out the full recipe and exact ingredient list below in the recipe card.

The pre-mix itself is a blend of all the dry ingredients – two varieties of gram flours, crushed whole spices and spice powders (minus the baking soda). Then whenever you’re ready to fry, simply add baking soda and fresh ingredients.

My advice – skip adding the soda to the pre-mix. Fresh baking soda just before frying leads to lighter, fluffier gota.

You need a balance between the coarse chickpea flour and fine chickpea flour to get the perfect texture. Fine flour helps with binding and gives softness whilst coarse gives a grainy texture which is characteristic of dakor na gota. I’ve found that too much fine flour makes them dense whilst too much coarse makes them heavy.

Both are available in Indian grocery stores. Coarse chickpea flour is often sold as Maghaj flour.

The spices: The traditional flavour comes from fennel seeds, whole black pepper, whole coriander seeds and star anise . These are found in every recipe for authentic dakor na gota. I find the best flavour comes from pounding these fresh at home in a pestle and mortar.

Red chilli powder, hing and sesame seeds all contribute to the flavour.

Citric acid is added for tartness which is required for Dakor na Gota

Oil I use vegetable oil or sunflower oil as they lead to crispier and fluffy gota.

Three dakor na gota placed in the background of a bowl of pre-mixed chickpea flours. - 2

As always if you make this recipe, be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe and tag me on Instagram @jcookingodyssey or #jcookingodyssey. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!

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Homemade pre-mix for Indian fritters in a round wooden bowl. - 3

Homemade Dakor na Gota Instant Mix

Ingredients

  • 400 gram coarse chickpea flour (magas flour)
  • 100 gram besan (fine chickpea flour)
  • 3 tablespoon oil
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
  • 1 tablespoon whole black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds
  • 1 star anise
  • 2 tablespoon red chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon citric acid
  • Pinch hing
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Instructions

  • Coarsely crush the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, star anise, and black pepper in a pestle and mortar.
  • In a big bowl, add the coarse chickpea flour and fine chickpea flour and mix well.
  • Now add oil and combine with the flour by rubbing with your fingertips.
  • Add all the other ingredients and mix.
  • Store this ready mix in a airtight jar and use within 8 weeks.

Video

Notes

PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.

Homemade pre-mix for Indian fritters in a round wooden bowl. - 4

Homemade Dakor na Gota Instant Mix

Ingredients

  • 400 gram coarse chickpea flour (magas flour)
  • 100 gram besan (fine chickpea flour)
  • 3 tablespoon oil
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
  • 1 tablespoon whole black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds
  • 1 star anise
  • 2 tablespoon red chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon citric acid
  • Pinch hing
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Instructions

  • Coarsely crush the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, star anise, and black pepper in a pestle and mortar.
  • In a big bowl, add the coarse chickpea flour and fine chickpea flour and mix well.
  • Now add oil and combine with the flour by rubbing with your fingertips.
  • Add all the other ingredients and mix.
  • Store this ready mix in a airtight jar and use within 8 weeks.

Video

Notes

PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.

Gujarati Methi na Gota are irresistible deep-fried fritters made with gram flour and fresh fenugreek leaves. They’re famous for being served at tea time with besan kadhi chutney during the rainy season. This is the only time I welcome the rain!

Indian deep fried fritters made with chickpea flour and fenugreek served in two plates. - 5

Deeply savoury, a bit spicy, and slightly bitter from the fresh fenugreek, these methi na gota are crispy outside and airy and fluffy inside. I love them hot with steaming adrak chai ! You can also serve them as a farsan as part of an authentic Gujarati thali .

They’re different from dakor na gota which are made with dairy and have sugar. Methi na gota are also a bit more airy, whereas dakor na gota are made with coarse chickpea flour, making them a bit more grainy.

Perfect Methi na Gota should be:

  1. Pale in colour – methi na gota should not brown when frying in the oil.
  2. Light and airy inside and lightly crisp outside – they puff up into round balls as they fry.

A note on ingredients & Recipe Tips

Be sure to check out the full recipe and exact ingredient list below in the recipe card.

  • Fine chickpea flour – aka fine besan which forms the base of the batter. I like to sieve the flour to keep it extra fine and get fluffy methi na gota.
  • Fenugreek leaves – methi when deep fried has a unique taste and aroma – similar to frying methi makai na vada . My hack for the best flavour – I always purchase methi on the day of, or only day before using in my recipes. The fresher, the better.
  • Spices – black pepper and coriander seeds. I like crush the whole spices instead of using them in their powdered form for maximum flavour and texture.
  • Green chillies – you can use spicy or milder ones here depending how brave you feel!
  • Bicarbonate of soda – I like to add this just before frying to keep the methi na gota light and airy. A spoon of lemon juice added to the soda helps it fizz.
  • Oil – you need this for the batter and to deep fry. My preference is sunflower oil or vegetable oil which gives a crispier fry. I like to add a spoon of hot oil into the batter – it helps the gota cook all the way through.

A few tips for the batter and oil temperature:

The batter should be light and airy so that the methi na gota automatically rise to the surface and flip themselves in the oil. The oil temperature should be on medium heat – too high and the gota will brown.

To get the batter light whisk before and after adding the baking soda to trap in as much air as possible.

Gujarati maethi na gota served with kadhi chutney and ginger chai. - 6

As always if you make this recipe, be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe and tag me on Instagram @jcookingodyssey or #jcookingodyssey. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!

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Indian deep fried fritters made with chickpea flour and fenugreek served in two plates. - 7

Methi Na Gota

Ingredients

  • 2 cup besan sieved
  • 1 cup methi roughly chopped
  • 1 teaspoon rice flour optional
  • 1 tablespoon black pepper crushed
  • 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds crushed
  • 3 tablespoon green chillies chopped
  • 1 teaspoon salt or per taste
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • oil for deep frying

Instructions

  • In a mixing bowl add sieved besan, crushed coriander seeds, black pepper, chillies, methi and salt.
  • Give it a good mix and add half a cup of water to make a dropping consistency batter. You may need more or less water.
  • Set aside for 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile heat oil in a kadai on medium heat.
  • Once again whisk the batter using a baloon whisk or your hand for a couple of minutes.
  • Add baking soda and pour lemon juice to activate the soda.
  • Then take a tablespoon hot oil from the kadai and add in the batter.
  • Whisk the batter in one direction for at least 40 seconds.
  • Take some batter (about a tablespoon) with your fingers and carefully drop in hot oil.
  • Wait for the fritters to automatically rise to the surface of the oil. If they don’t turn by themselves within a few seconds to half a minute, turn them yourself using a slotted spoon.
  • Fry for a further minute or so and remove from the oil. Repeat for the remaining batter.
  • Serve hot.

Video

Notes

Nutrition

PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.