Author Notes
The word "gota" comes from the Gujarati word "goti," meaning marbles. Gota are fried chickpea flour fritters shaped likes marbles. Add any greens like fenugreek leaves or cilantro to make the fritters soft inside. —Annada Rathi
Ingredients
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1 cup
(90 grams) chickpea flour or besan
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1 cup
(40 grams) picked, roughly chopped fresh fenugreek leaves (or cilantro)
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1/2 teaspoon
salt
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1/2 teaspoon
turmeric
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1
Serrano or Thai pepper (10 grams), roughly crushed (optional)
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1/4 teaspoon
baking soda
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1 cup
vegetable oil, for frying
Directions
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Mix all the ingredients in a bowl except oil. Add 4 tablespoons of water to make the dough thick and pasty. The dough should be thinner than a dough to make bread but thicker than that of a pancake. If you insert a teaspoon in this batter, you should be able to pick up a ball in the spoon without running from the sides.
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Heat oil in a high-sided frying pan. After 6 to 7 minutes, add a small piece of chickpea flour dough to the oil. If the piece hits the oil with a buzzing sound and comes right up to the top, it means the oil is hot enough. Now take a teaspoon of this oil and add it to the batter. Known an "mon," this oil is supposed to make the gota cripsy.
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Generally, I use my hand to drop these gota into the oil. Take marble-sized dough in your hand between your thumb and four fingers. Insert it into the oil slowly by pushing the thumb across the fingers.
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Add 4 to 5 gotas at a time. Turn them with a slotted spoon and make sure they get a golden brown color. It will take about 5 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to dry. Repeat until you've used all the batter—you'll get between 25 and 30 pieces total.
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Serve warm with green cilantro chutney or as a part of thali.
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