Fritters · Tea-Time Street Food
Bhajia
Photo: Arfaan ke / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Extra-crispy batches are nicknamed "nylon" bhajia by vendors, for how thin and see-through the fried edges turn.
Thin potato slices are dipped in a spiced chickpea-flour batter and deep-fried until crisp, then served with a squeeze of lime and tamarind or coconut chutney. Bhajia stalls cluster near Dar es Salaam's bus stands and tea rooms, frying batches to order for commuters and office workers.
Why it's made this way: The dish shows the Indian imprint on Swahili coast cooking, brought by generations of Gujarati and other South Asian traders who settled in Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam; the chickpea-flour batter is a direct borrowing from Indian pakora technique.
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Part of World of Street Food — 3248 dishes from 118 countries.
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