Bok Phul Bora Recipe: Crispy Herbal Pumpkin Flower Fritters
This bor, bora, or bhaja is enjoyed as a side dish or a starter in Bengal, Assam, and Orissa.
Understanding the Style: Fritters vs. Fries vs. Bora
If you love global fried snacks, understanding texturizing styles helps you master recipes like this one. While Western-style fries typically refer to long strips of starch cooked entirely through immersion, and general fritters cover any batter-dipped meat, vegetable, or fruit, the traditional Bengali bora brings a unique identity. A bora uses a spiced rice and chickpea flour paste that hugs delicate ingredients like flowers or vegetables tightly, yielding an ultra-crisp exterior and a tender bite. For more crispy culinary variations, check out our guide on traditional Bengali bhaja recipes or learn how different textures compare in our global fritter and tempura style overview.
Ingredients
- Coarse-grained rice flour and chickpea flour (besan), 50g each for a thick batter
- Turmeric and red chili powder, 1 tsp
- Salt and sugar to taste
- Baking soda, 1 pinch
- Water for batter
- Mustard oil for deep frying
Seasonal Choice
You can make this recipe with " pumpkin flower" (কুমড়ো - kumro phul) and also with Shapla flower Water Lily.
Instructions
- Wash and remove the stamen or pistil from the flower, pat with a paper towel.
- Make the batter from equal portions of both flours. The consistency should be thick.
- Add turmeric and red chili powder, salt, sugar, baking powder. Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat the oil, dip the flower in the batter, and deep fry on medium heat until crisp and done. It may shallow fry.
- Serve hot with kasundi.
For 2 servings. Preparation time is approximately 30 min. Half an hour to cook the dish.
Chef Dewan's Japanese-Style Bok Phul Tempura (A Global Perspective)
To see how remarkably similar global techniques can be when treating delicate edible blossoms, it is wonderful to look at Chef Dewan's Japanese-style approach to these flowers, bridging traditional eastern cooking with crisp tempura art.
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
- 25-30 bok phool or kumro phool
- 1 cup tempura flour or all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chilled water
- 1 litre refined oil for frying
For the Dip:
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup mirin
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- ½ tbsp sugar
- ½ tsp grated ginger
- 1 tbsp radish paste
Method:
- For the dip: Put mirin in a pan and bring to a boil on medium heat. Add water, soy sauce, and sugar. Bring the sauce to a boil, then remove from the heat. Add grated ginger and radish to the dipping sauce.
- For the tempura: Put iced water in a bowl. Add sifted flour to the water and mix lightly (be careful not to overmix). Wash and dry the flowers. Dip each flower in the batter and put it in hot oil. If it loses some batter, immediately add more batter to the flower very carefully. Fry until crisp. The tempura should never be browned too much, so control the heat accordingly. The excess pieces of batter which also get fried may be served as a garnish. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce.
Bok Phul Tempura - Japanese Way (Originally shared - Graphiti, Sunday Telegraph Dec 30, 2012)
About Bok Phul - Nutritional Facts
Bok phul (Sanskrit - Vaka or Bok)—the white flowers of S. grandiflora—resembles little birds, slightly bitter in taste. The white flowers, young leaves, and tender pods of Agasti are edible and have culinary uses as a vegetable or to supplement meals in India and Southeast Asia.
Flowers are an excellent source of calcium, a fair source of iron, and a very good source of vitamin B. Edible flowers are safe to eat only in small amounts.
For best flavor, flowers should be fresh and harvested early in the day. Wilted and faded flowers, and the unopened buds can be distasteful, often bitter. This flower can be eaten whole, but has bitter parts, such as the stamens and pistil.
Global Uses - Cultural Significance
Young pods are eaten like string beans. The young pods are also eaten along with the leaves used in curries like kaeng som and kaeng khae, as well as raw with nam phrik.
In Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, this is called Katurai, Katuray, Katuday – The Corkwood Tree flowers. In the Thai language, it is called dok khae. In Sri Lanka – the agati leaves, are sometimes added to sudhu hodhi or white curry, a widely eaten, thin coconut gravy and is believed locally to be a cure for canker sores. In Vietnam, Sesbania grandiflora (Leguminosae) forms a delicious ingredient in the very popular local sour soup called canh chua.
In India, this plant is known as agati (Hindi), agastya (Kannada), agise (Telugu), and as bok phul bhaja, Katura murunga or Agathi Keerai Kariamudhu.
This tree has got a number of medicinal properties which are used in SIDDHA, Ayurvedic, and other traditional medicines.
Aathi keerai, Agathi Keerai, agase soppu, these dry curries are usually made on Dhuvadeshi day that is after the Ekadasi day of Marghzi month according to the Tamil calendar, which is an auspicious day dedicated to Lord Vishnu on the eleventh day of Lunar fortnight. The Dhuvadeshi day falls on the 12th day that is the next day after Ekadasi, in the month. The devotees who observe Ekadasi by fasting the whole day, the next day will prepare a culturally tailored food. This is one such recipe prepared on that day, they usually make Agase Palya, Mor kohambu, Agathi keerai poriyal, Moong dal payasam, etc.
In Orissa during the pious month of Kartik (which is November), the old women especially widows observe their habisha or fasting and worship Lord Vishnu in the form of Lord Jagannath. During habisha they observe great penance, they do not use oil, do not take any non-veg food, or garlic, onion or spicy curry. They eat sunned (arua) rice, moong or masoor dal. Only limited and particular vegetables are allowed to take like plantain, yam, and arum. The dalma or dal with these vegetables is cooked without oil or spice. Only a little bit of ghee is allowed. During this period of penance and austerity, they cook and eat the leaves of Bok or Agasti or Abakpusphi or Bashuka, most probably because of its good iron content it has been introduced traditionally as a good nutrition supplement.
The dried leaves of both S. grandiflora and S. sesban are used in some countries as a tea which is considered to have antibiotic, anti-helminthic, anti-tumour and contraceptive properties.
Recently a number of experiments have been carried out and the results proved that the leaf extract of this plant has a good analgesic and CNS depressant activity. In the present study, results provide further support for the traditional use of S. grandiflora in the treatment of smoke-related diseases.
The study revealed the presence of rich heritage among the tribal people, using it for medicinal purposes for the treatment of different ailments. The juice of the flowers (two teaspoonfuls) is taken twice daily to cure dysmenorrhoea among the Rajbanshi community and also known as an astringent and anticephalalgic tree.
Mukta or Pearls, the gems have been used in medicine from a very ancient period and are mentioned by Susruta. Pearls are purified by being boiled in the juice of the leaves of Sesbania aculeata (jayanti), or of the flowers of Agati grandiflora (vaka).
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What are the bitter parts of Bok Phul that need to be removed?
You should remove the stamens and pistil from the center of the pumpkin/agati flower before battering, as these parts can carry an unpleasantly bitter taste.
Can I shallow fry Bok Phul Bora instead of deep frying?
Yes! While deep frying gives a uniform crunch, you can easily shallow fry these fritters in a moderate amount of mustard oil until golden brown on both sides.
What is the best accompaniment for Bok Phul Bora?
They are traditionally served piping hot alongside a side of pungent mustard sauce known as kasundi.