India’s Independence Day is coming up. I unfortunately do not know a ton about India, but my two biggest things are these: they are famous for their incredible example of non-violent activism that led to their liberation from Great Britain. Second, they have a special food that makes onion rings seem boring and sad.

Let’s talk about onion bhajis.

What are these things? How do I put this… they’re deep-fried onion fritters made in a special, spiced batter. The batter is made with a chickpea flour that give them a distinctive texture. To me, the reason these are so good is two-fold: first, the spices mixed in with the batter give the bhajis an addictive and highly ethnic flavor. And second, unlike how America fries onions one slice at a time, these are fritters of fried clusters of onion, which gives them a lot more textural variety.

So what about that spiced batter?

It’s common to add at least cumin, coriander, turmeric and curry powder to the batter, and while less authentic, chile powder is also growing in popularity. These spices add a warm color to the bhajis, but more than that they add a ton of flavor.

And let me say, India is arguably the all-out king is deep-fried foods, so when they spice their batter this heavily, I want to listen.

The question as to why India enjoys so many fried foods and spiced batter is up to debate, but there’s a handful of possible reasons:

India is incredibly hot, and there isn’t always access to refrigeration. Without refrigeration, food spoils quickly. Frying helps by removing moisture and covering up bad tastes or smells, especially from ingredients that aren't very fresh. Since many people can't afford to waste food or buy expensive items like meat, frying makes these lower-quality ingredients edible. Other cooking methods, like steaming or boiling, might actually make the bad flavors more noticeable.

On top of that, fat carries and amplifies flavor, so lots of spices and a deep-fried food are just a match made in heaven.

Now before making these, I encourage you to review my article about how to fry foods like a boss. But once you’re done, make these onion bhajis!