Transform humble carrots into crispy fritters as an appetizer in under 30 minutes. This is a gluten-free recipe, loved by both kids and adults.

Carrot is a nutritious & versatile root vegetable but sadly it is an afterthought vegetable. Wouldn’t you agree? Carrots are essential for mirepoix (flavor base made with onion, celery, carrots for soups/stews), glazed or roasted as a side dish, or use fresh carrot into salads, wraps, or crudités with hummus. Then, there is an entire genre of carrot desserts – carrot cake, carrot cookies, carrot pudding, carrot bread.

I am rarely excited to cook with carrots except when it’s time to make fritters. Common, who doesn’t like well-seasoned, battered, crispy goodness. I used the pakora technique (Indian vegetable fritters) to make carrots and fennel fritters. The main difference is the use of white chickpea flour (besan) as a binder, which adds a nutty flavor, little protein, & fiber. You can find besan at most Indian grocery stores or check the gluten-free aisle at your regular grocery store, labeled as garbanzo/chickpea flour.

**Besan/gram flour is made with split brown chickpeas while chickpea flour/garbanzo flour is made white chickpeas. You can use them interchangeably in this recipe.

Fennel is a vegetable from carrot family but it not a root vegetable. It has a fresh, aromatic anise flavor and every part of it is edible. It can enjoyed raw, sautéed, roasted, or even added to soups and sauces. I often swap daikon with fennel in this spiralized apple & daikon slaw recipe!

As fritters can be virtually be made with any vegetables, I hope hope this Carrots and Fennel Fritters will inspire you try your own variations. The recipe I am sharing below makes 8 fritters but you can easily scale up the recipe as needed. The original recipe is from food52 – Best Carrot Fritters Recipe.

Carrot and Fennel Fritters

Ingredients

1 cup shredded carrot ( I used 1 medium size carrot, peeled and grated using a box grater)
1 cup shredded fennel (just the bulb part)
1 teaspoon salt + more for sprinkling at the end
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup neutral oil such as canola, sunflower, peanut oil, for frying

optional: handful of herbs like cilantro, parsley, chopped Serrano or jalapeno pepper

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine shredded carrot, fennel with salt, baking powder, cumin power, chili powder, chickpea flour. Add chopped herbs and green pepper if using.

2. Add beaten egg to the veggie mix. Combine everything to make a thick (not too wet) batter. If the batter feels dry, add couple tablespoon of water to bring it together. If the batter feels to wet, add couple tablespoon of chickpea flour.

3. Pour oil (about 1/2 inch) in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Take about 2 tablespoon of batter, flatten them slightly and drop into the hot oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes, flipping them half way through until they turn golden brown and cooked through.

4. Place them on a plate/tray lined with paper towel. Sprinkle with salt when hot.

5. Enjoy with dipping sauce of your choice. I’d recommend something yogurt-based, cilantro or tamarind chutney.

More recipes using vegetables:

• Okonomiyaki – Japanese Vegetable Pancakes

• Corn Cakes with Avocado Salsa