Home fried poppadoms are best!
Home fried poppadoms are so much better than those nasty things found at shops.
Whether you spell them poppadoms, poppadom, papadums or papadoms, you are probably looking at this recipe because you love these tasty pre-dinner snacks.
There’s really no point going to all the trouble of making a delicious curry dinner if you’re just going to serve it with shop bought pre-fried poppadoms.
Other than preparing these with a lentil dough, which is a bit of a chore, shop bought papads are the way to go.
By the way, I will shortly be posting a homemade poppadom recipe using urid dhal flour.
When is the best time to serve poppadoms?
Most curry houses will serve these tasty snacks as a starter. They are served with a selection of pickles, raitas and/or chutneys. Once you try this recipe using papads as they do at most good Indian restaurants, you’ll see how easy they are to make.
Poppadoms are real money makers for restaurants because the papads are dirt cheap yet they can charge quite a lot for them and nobody seems to complain.
You might when you see how easy they are to make. In India, poppadoms are served not just as starters. They love their flavours and textures in India and they crispy poppadoms are so good served with a curry.
What exactly are papads?
Papads are the thin lentil discs needed to make poppadoms. They are available at almost all Asian grocers. I’ve even seen them sold at some supermarkets.
The discs are made by preparing a dough and then flattening small balls of the dough before drying them. Purchasing papads is a lot easier.
Papads are available plain and also many different varieties. Black pepper, chilli powder, green chillis, cumin… these are some of my favourites. Keep a look out for them.
Is this the only way to cook poppadoms?
Nope. Frying them like you do in this recipe is the way it would be done at Indian restaurant. You could also cook them in a microwave for about 30 – 40 seconds and watch as they become crispy.
Frying them in a dry or lightly oils pan over medium high heat is another option that works well. Like most things, however, deep fried tastes best.
frying papadams
You are going to need a wire rack, paper towels and a slotted spoon.
Serving size – one to two poppadoms per person.
Working ahead and storage
You can fry your poppadoms a good week in advance. That’s how they are done at most restaurants. Keep the fried poppadoms in air-tight containers in a cool location such as a cupboard.
Papads ready for cooking! Here I have plain and black pepper papads.
Once you make your poppadoms, you might like to make one or more of these to dip them in.
Mixed Vegetable Pickle
Lime Pickle
Cold Curry House Style Onion Chutney
Coriander and Mint Chutney
Mint Coriander and Mango Chutney
Smooth Garlic, Chilli and Mint Raita
Tomato Raita
How To Make Poppadoms
Ingredients
- Papads (1 to 2 per person)
- Rapeseed (canola) oil for deep frying
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large wok over medium high heat.
- When a piece of papad puffs up quite quickly in the oil, it is hot enough to get started.
- I usually cook two papads at a time to speed things up a bit. It also keeps them more uniform.
- When you drop the papads in the oil, they will very quickly become full sized poppadoms. Remove them from the oil when this happens with a slotted spoon.
- Don't be tempted to let them turn a light brown as they will burn. The poppadoms continue cooking when removed from the oil.
- Place the cooked papadams on a paper towel to soak up the excess oil and then store on a wire rack.
- Serve immediately with a selection of pickles and chutneys or store in a very low oven until ready to eat.
dani
Wednesday 8th of February 2023
very good
Dan Toombs
Saturday 18th of February 2023
Thank you! Dan
neville knight
Sunday 24th of January 2021
Very descriptive except for the recipe which i cant find,only reference is make dough awesome
Dan Toombs
Tuesday 26th of January 2021
The recipe is there. You just need to buy the papads and fry them as explained. Thanks very much. Dan
Lynda
Saturday 3rd of June 2017
Your title is totally deceptive. I should read "how to cook store-bought papadams". While your method may be best - getting them from the store is NOT homemade. I was disappointed, Mr. Toombs.
Dan Toombs
Wednesday 7th of June 2017
Sorry to disappoint you Lynda.
Dan
Karl
Saturday 22nd of March 2014
Try the web-site "Spices of India". They have a great selection of the Lijat brand of papads. I always grill now as it's quick and less fatty. I've never used pre-cooked.
Dave
Friday 18th of January 2013
Deep fried I find much better than microwaved. Some tongs work better than others too to fish them out quick! Interestingly some oils evaporate off better than others. I had used an oven on low (50 degrees) to get rid of the excess oil, but when I topped up my regular oil from a poundshop with about 25% sunflower oil, it went without needing the time in the oven.
Dan Toombs
Monday 21st of January 2013
Totally agree Dave. Deep fried is best. Love pappadams!
Dan