Chickweed Pakoras

Inspired by something I found in River Cottage Handbook: Hedgerow, I took what I’ve learned from experimenting with trying to make the perfect onion bhaji and applied parts of that process to these delicious little bites. Chickweed is a flowering weed that can be found annually growing wherever it can plant its roots. Despite the often upturning of noses at the idea of eating a weed, it is incredibly delicious and good for you. I definitely advocate you swap it in for other, more basic greens in other dishes!

Incorporating chickweed into such delicious street food is a dream come true for me, a melding of my two favourite culinary amphitheatres. Adding yoghurt to the batter makes the pakora creamier and richer, instead of using only water. It should also be noted that the spices used here are just a guideline. You can really change them up for whatever you feel like; more chili powder for more heat, maybe a dash of caraway seeds if that's up your street, or if you don’t want to fiddle with spice balances, just throw a tablespoon or two of your go-to curry powder in the mix.

100g gram flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed

1/2 tsp cumin seeds, crushed

1/2 tsp turmeric

Salt

2 tbsp yoghurt

75g freshly harvested chickweed

1 green chili

1 small onion

2 cloves of garlic

Vegetable oil

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, spices and salt in a large bowl, then add the yoghurt and enough water to create a thick paste - think of the consistency of mayonnaise or mustard.

2. Roughly chop the chickweed, no need to be fancy about it, and add to the batter.

3. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat with a little oil, finely dice your onion, chili and garlic and cook for a few minutes until translucent and aromatic. Add to the batter, then give it a good stir to completely coat the chickweed.

4. Using the frying pan we used to cook the onions before, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Over a medium heat, add the pakora mix and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until nicely browned. How you shape the pakora is up to you; as you can tell from the photo, I went for burger-like shape but you could do little balls, pakora fingers, whatever takes your fancy!

5. Pat down with some kitchen towel to remove any excess oil, and serve hot. Mint yoghurt is a good accompaniment to these, but if you have a preferred raita or chutney, they would be superb too.