A bhaji or bajji is a type of

fritter A fritter is a portion of meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables, or other ingredients which have been Batter (cooking), battered or breading, breaded, or just a portion of dough without further ingredients, that is deep-frying, deep-fried. Fritters ar ...

originating in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. It is made from spicy hot vegetables, commonly

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

, and has several variants. It is a popular snack food in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and is also very popular in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. It can be found for sale in street-side stalls, especially in '' tapris'' (on streets) and ''

dhaba A dhaba is a roadside restaurant in the Indian subcontinent. They are on highways, generally serve local cuisine, and also serve as truck stops. They are most commonly found next to Filling station, petrol stations, and most are open 24 hours ...

s'' (on highways). It is also a common starter or side dish in

Anglo-Indian cuisine Anglo-Indian cuisine is the cuisine that developed during the British Raj in India. The cuisine introduced dishes such as curry, chutney, kedgeree, mulligatawny and pish pash to English palates. Anglo-Indian cuisine was documented in detail ...

across the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

for the largest onion bhaji is held by one weighing made by

Oli Khan Oli Khan Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, MBE, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, FRSA () is a British-Bangladeshi chef and restaurateur. Khan operates the restaurants Surma Takeaway and Spice Rouge in Stevenage. Khan a ...

and Team of Surma Takeaway

Stevenage Stevenage ( ) is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevenage w ...

on 4 February 2020.

Regional varieties

Outside Southern and Western India, such preparations are often known as ''

pakora Pakora () is a fritter originating from the Indian subcontinent. They are sold by street vendors and served in restaurants across South Asia. They often consist of vegetables such as potatoes and onions, which are coated in seasoned gram flour ...

''. Its variations include the chili bajji, potato bajji, onion bajji, plantain bajji and the bread bajji (or

bread pakora Bread pakora is an Indian fried snack ('' pakora'' or fritter). It is also known as ''bread bhaji'' (or ''bajji''). A common street food, it is made from bread slices, gram flour, and spices among other ingredients. The snack is prepared by di ...

). Another version is called bonda (in south India), vada (in Maharashtra) and gota (in Gujarat). Bonda has potato or mixed-vegetable filling while gota is made with green fenugreek leaves.

Cultural significance

Bhajis are a component of traditional

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, and

Telugu cuisine Andhra cuisine, culturally known as Telugu cuisine, is a cuisine of India native to the state of Andhra Pradesh and is the culinary style of Telugu people. It is generally known for its tangy, hot, and spicy taste. Regional variations The r ...

s served on special occasions and at festivals. They are generally served with a cup of

coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...

, or a traditional serving of ''yameen''. Banana peppers are used for making mirchi bhajji. Onion bhajis are often eaten as a starter in

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people are a distinct minority group, minority community of mixed-race British and Indian ancestry. During the colonial period, their ancestry was defined as British paternal and Indian maternal heritage; post-independence, "Angl ...

restaurants before the main course, along with '' poppadoms'' and other Indian snacks. They may be served with a side of salad and a slice of lemon, or with mango chutney, and are traditionally made to a mild taste.

Gallery

File:Banana Peppers.jpg,

Banana pepper The banana pepper (also known as the yellow wax pepper or banana chili) is an average-sized member of the chili pepper family that has a mild, tangy taste. While typically bright yellow, it is possible for them to change to green, red, or orange ...

used in mirchi bhaji File:A closeup of Bajji.JPG, A close-up of bajji File:The Bajji maker.jpg, Preparation of bajjis in

South India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...

File:Bajji's ;) (5549256969).jpg, A variant: aloo bajji File:Onion bajji picture.JPG, Onion bajji File:कांदा भजी.jpg, Kanda bhaji

References

External links

* {{Doughnuts Appetizers Indian snack foods Pakistani snack foods Fritters Tamil cuisine Onion-based foods