Preparation time
less than 30 mins
Cooking time
10 to 30 mins
Serves
Serves 4
Dietary
Vegetarian
By Ben TishIngredients
For the patties
- 225g/8oz gram flour (chickpea flour)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp dried chilli flakes
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ bunch fresh coriander, roughly chopped
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 4 burger buns, split in half
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the salad
- 1 head fennel
- 1 small courgette, peeled
- ½ lemon, juice only
- 40ml/1½fl oz extra virgin olive oil
Method
To make the patties, sieve the gram flour into a large bowl, season with salt and pepper and whisk in 750ml/26fl oz water until you have a batter.
Put a small frying pan over a medium heat, add the cinnamon, chilli flakes and cumin and toast lightly until fragrant.
Whisk the toasted spices into the batter and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the coriander. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and cook slowly over a medium heat, stirring, until the batter thickens and comes away from the sides of the pan.
Grease a lipped baking tray with a little oil, pour in the batter (you ideally want a depth of about 0.5cm) and leave it to fully cool before transferring to the fridge to chill.
Thinly slice the fennel and courgette on a mandolin or with a very sharp knife, then toss with the lemon juice and oil and season with salt and pepper.
Turn out the chickpea cake onto a board and cut into four rectangles.
Fill a deep-fat fryer or a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan two-thirds full with the vegetable oil. Heat to 170C (a cube of bread should turn brown in 1 minute when dropped in.) CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.
Carefully drop in the chickpea rectangles and fry in batches until golden brown. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. Season with sea salt and serve in the buns with the fennel salad.