I used to be a great fan of this Ooty chilli Bajji/ Ooty milagai bajji. I think I have had this in exhibitions 2-3 times when I was kid and recently 3 or 4 years back too. I just love it! At home when I buy a pack of this chillies, I make a lot and only me and Vj to eat it, so eat a lot too and got bored of it. We both actually now a days stopped eating this if made at home! Yes, one or two will be fine and tasty too, too much means we run away. So this time, I took only 4 from little India shopping and made it just for blogging sake 😊. There is no such fancy recipe in this one, plain bajji, that’s it. I have not tried the stuffed north Indian version yet. But thought of sharing this simple recipe too as some beginners in cooking may not know how to make this bajjis without too much of hot (spiciness).
Chilli Bajji/ milagai Bajji recipe
Recipe Cuisine: Indian | Recipe Category: Snack
Prep Time: 10 mins | Cook time: 10 mins | Makes: 4
Prep Time: 10 mins | Cook time: 10 mins | Makes: 4
Ingredients
Ooty bajji chilli (light green in colour and big) – 4
Besan/ kadala maavu – ½ cup
Rice flour – ¼ cup
Corn flour (optional) – 1 teaspoon
Cooking soda (sodium bi carb) – 3 pinches
Asafoetida – ⅛ teaspoon
Ajwain(omam) or jeera – 1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder – ½ teaspoon
Salt & water – As needed
Hot oil (optional) – 1 tblsp
Oil – for deep frying
Besan/ kadala maavu – ½ cup
Rice flour – ¼ cup
Corn flour (optional) – 1 teaspoon
Cooking soda (sodium bi carb) – 3 pinches
Asafoetida – ⅛ teaspoon
Ajwain(omam) or jeera – 1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder – ½ teaspoon
Salt & water – As needed
Hot oil (optional) – 1 tblsp
Oil – for deep frying
Method
- Wash the chillies and pat dry with clean kitchen towels. Slit them each lengthwise with a pairing knife (small knife), without completely split them into two. Carefully remove the seeds inside completely with the help of the knife. Just scrap away the seeds with the knife.
- In a mixing bowl, mix gram flour, rice flour, red chilli powder, sodium bi carb, asafoetida, salt, corn flour and hot oil if using, ajwain or jeera. Add water little by little and mix well with a whisk and make a thick batter. The batter should easily coat the chillies, not too thick.
- Mean while, heat enough oil to fry the bajjis in a kadai. Dip one by one the chillies and drop carefully in to hot oil. Cook both sides for 2 minutes a side or until golden brown and crisp. Once done, drain in paper towels.
Notes
- If you are not comfortable of slitting without splitting and taking out the seeds, then you can slit and split into two each chilli and take out the seeds easily.
- Seeds should be removed completely for reducing the spiciness. Otherwise it will be too spicy and no good for your tummy too.
- The batter should be in correct consistency so that it spreads over the chillies easily and forms a thin layer. If the coating is too thick, i.e; if the batter is too thick, it will take time to cook and the bajjis inside will not get cooked.
- Cook in medium flame to ensure the bajjis get cooked inside.
- Mix the batter and keep it ready, once the oil is hot, you can add a laddle full of hot oil carefully in the batter and mix. This is to avoid sucking of oil in the bajji.
- If your chilli is still spicy after removing the seeds, then you can keep it immersed in water mixed with salt and a lemon squeezed in it.
- Bachelors can try the same with ready made bajji mix.
Serve immediately, hot hot, with thick coconut chutney the best, remember, if its not hot, its not molaga bajji, its paper bajji 😛 . I had it with chutney, tea (which is said to be the perfect combination) and rusk. But when I was a kid, I used to have aavin icecream after bajji 😆.
perfect for this season..plz tell d reason behind adding hot oil..
did u taste the same milagai bajji in coutralam?? if not the tastiest one is that than ooty :d after a bath in waterfalls u wll nt know how many u had also u wont feel too much oil … great recipe !!!
Like aparna's comment..very true…
They looks so yumm..
Made them once and loved it..
Looks so great…
mouth watering! 🙂
so yummy I love it
Perfect for this rainy season.. yummy 😀
yummy and inviting recipe…
looks simply awesome! Wonderfully prepared.
Mouthwatering !!!!
Nice ..perfect for the season
perfect for the weather 🙂
fabulous bajji…tempting clicks
Looks lovely. Quick observation -Is that a non stick pan that you have used for heating oil? Is it safe? I have heard/read that non-stick pans are quite hollow and do not have a firm base and heating oil to high temps is dangerous.
woww.. yummy. really mouthwatering. want to eat now itself..;)… try bread bajji if possible….
Perfect evening snack. It looks so good.
Perfectly made..love it anytime 🙂
Wow all time favorite,Your pics really speaks 🙂
I'm a student moving to Singapore for my further studies this month. I was wondering if you could let me know where is the best place to shop for Indian provisions. I will be staying in Jurong area
Stunning… Ooty milagai Bajji reminds me of some good old days..wish go back and enjoy the same. awesome pictures…
Little India, Mustafa mainly… 🙂
You are right, usually I use another metal kadai usually, that was busy cooking something else, so used this for this quick frying.
Milagai bajji is my most fav snack, and i never miss it during my visit to Marina beach. the clicks are totally tempting me to try out this soon
Am missing them very much..love to munch it anytime.
Your food photos are amazing. You can share your mouth watering photos with us at foodienewz.com. foodienewz.com is a new food sharing site and we actually try our best to promote your food photos. At foodienewz.com all your food photos will be published without any editorial review so I really hope you come and join us.
I love this on any rainy day…looks yum
Very well written recipe…love the pics too. I tried it today…had only 4 molagais…tried different combos and ended up eating the first 3…hubby got the last one – the best one 😉
Raji, marina beach molaga bajji is also the best one.after wetting ourselves completely in the beach and having hot bajji with a spicy mint chutney……really amazing…
What do the people of the north stuff in them? 🙂
Like
So crispy and yummy