You will have to deep-fry the pakoras.
Place oil (2-3 inches of it) in wok on medium-high heat.
Select some vegetables of choice, I used aubergine, potatoes and onions.
Slice them very thinly. Roast some zeera (whole cumin seeds and set aside).
In a mixing bowl, combine besan (gram flour) with salt, baking powder (a tsp should do), roasted zeera (cumin seeds) and red pepper flakes.
Slowly add in water, a few drops at a time, and stir till it becomes a thick mixture, a bit like cake batter.
Dredge your vegetables in the batter and test one in the wok. It should slowly turn golden.
If it burns, turn the heat a tad bit lower-you don't want a crisp crust with raw vegetables inside.
You will have to play around with this through trial and error.
Continue to drop dredged vegetables into the wok one by one.
They should take about 1 minute per side, to become a golden brown.
Serve with a mint-yogurt chutney and piping hot builder's tea- a Pakistani version of 'afternoon tea'.
