Make healthy fries at home! 5 delicious recipes using lady finger, bitter gourd, banana flower, zucchini, and green beans
Steamy hot pakoras and yummy crispy fried chicken can make anyone cheat their dieting. Every kid craves the deep-fried dishes. But fried recipes are considered sinful and unhealthy because they build bad cholesterol in the body.
Most of the fried bought outside are cooked in low-quality palm oil.
But is oil unhealthy totally?
It is a tricky question, oil is the culprit in most heart attacks but experts say oil is the main source of the MUFAs and PUFAs, the essential fatty acids that the body needs.
Confusing right?
The secret is with the choice and usage of it. Homemade recipes give us freedom of customization.
Enjoy these 5 yummy and never-tried healthy fry recipes in minutes at home.
Crispy Finger Fry:
Lady’s finger/okra is nutritious with magnesium, vitamins and antioxidants. The rocket science behind why kids hate the lady’s finger is yet to be found. But worry, not these crispy fingers are too good to say “No”.
Preparation
Wash 10 Okra and wipe off clean, cut the head and tail and slice them into half.
Add in 1 tsp. chili powder, ½ tsp. turmeric, a pinch of hing, 1 tsp. ginger garlic paste, ½ tsp. salt, ½ cup Rava/sooji.
Mix them together without balls and coat the lady’s finger with it and let it soak for 30 minutes.
Heat the fry pot/Kadai with 2 tbsp. oil.
Place in the okra coated with rava in the oil.
Simmer for 5 minutes and sauté it.
Flip over and roast it even on all sides in low flame to not burn it.
Fry till it turns crisp and golden.
Serve it hot and crispy
Stuffed Bitter Gourd Cheese Fritters
Bitter gourd is a lovely vegetable hated universally by adults and kids. However, it is very healthy. This recipe is going to turn those bitter ones yummy. We will need cheese, one bitter gourd, and mashed potatoes.
Preparation
Wash the bitter gourd, remove the seeds inside, and cut it into thick slices of half an inch.
Grate the cheese and mix it with the mashed potatoes, a pinch of garam masala and salt to small balls.
Can add finely chopped and cooked veggies like carrot, beans and etc… while making balls
Stuff the balls in the center of the bitter gourd slices.
Marinate the slices with 1/2 tsp. red chili, 1/4 tsp. pepper powder, 1 tbsp. curd, 1 tbsp. rice flour, 1 tbsp. gram flour, and salt required and leave it for an hour
Heat the pan and add the required quantity of oil to fry the slices.
Now add the marinated slices in batches and fry in medium flame
Flip the slices to cook both the sides until it turns golden brown.(be careful not to burn the slices)
This is a yummy recipe with a flavor blast with cheesy insides.
Banana Florets Fritters (Vazhaipoo Vadai)
The banana tree is a natural treasure of health benefits. Every part of it including its leaves, flowers, stems,s, and fruits is a source of nutrition and is used in cooking many delicacies. The florets are usually sour but when made as fritter is spicy and tasty.
Cleaning the Florets
Cleaning the florets is very essential to avoid loosies in kids. The black sap that comes from the florets leaves a stain on your fingers and clothes, so apply oil before cleaning. Wash the flower and peel the bract to find the florets. Remove one or two layers at a time and clean because they turn color immediately after removal. Take each floret and remove the style and perianth and keep it aside.
Preparation
Soak the channa dal in water for 2 hours. Do not soak longer than that or the vadai will absorb more oil while frying.
Coarse grind the soaked dal in a food processor along with cumin, dried red chilies, fennel seeds, garlic and ginger. Do not use water while grinding.
Remove the ground batter in a bowl and add chopped onions, finely chopped banana florets, green chilies, coriander, curry leaves, salt as required and a pinch of asfoetida.
Mix well and make small balls. Gently flatten the balls and deep fry it in oil. Cook in medium flame to get crispy fritters.
Serve the healthy and tasty vada hot.
Zucchini Fry:
Most of us do not know how to cook this vegetable and we avoid buying it. A particularly healthy way of fries to make is with zucchini. The vegetable has a neutral flavor. Zucchini has been used in folk medicine to treat colds, aches, and various health conditions. Zucchini contains a variety of vitamins, minerals, and beneficial plant compounds.
Preparation
Peel and chop zucchini into thick strips.
Wash and wipe the strips dry.
Beat an egg with turmeric, garam masala, chili powder, salt and pepper.
Dip the strips in beaten egg and roll them in bread crumbs.
Fry the strips in oil until crisp. The strips can also be baked.
Serve it hot and crisp.
Puffy Green Bean Sticks:
It is an interesting and fun way to munch on the beans.
Preparation
Wash the bean sticks clean.
In a bowl, add and mix a cup of flour, few tablespoons of cornflour, seasoned with pepper, salt and other spices if necessary depending on your taste. The flour should be dry.
Coat the beans in the dry seasoned flour.
Dip the sticks in the beaten egg and coat them in flour again.
Fry breaded green beans in oil until golden brown in batches. The sticks can also be baked if you have an oven.
Make your favorite fries in different ways to make them healthy and yet tastier.
5 Healthy Fry Recipes
Make healthy fries at home! 5 delicious recipes using lady finger, bitter gourd, banana flower, zucchini, and green beans
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