Made in a few drops of oil, these healthy,low fat koftas/pakoras/fritters are crisp on the outside and soft inside. Traditionally deep fried, this is a healthier version of the traditional lauki koftas. These are vegan and gluten free as the only binding agents used are gramflour/besan and rice flour.

I had initially shared how to make these koftas in an Appe pan/ ebelskiver pan. Ever since I made the spinach pakoras in the Air Fryer and it got so much love from all my readers, I have been wanting to try a variation of it and make the lauki koftas in the air fryer.

The key thing is to add no water at all. The lauki/zucchini release its own water when salt is added which is enough for binding. If you have a small air fryer and cant make all the fritters at one time, add salt to only half the quantity. Otherwise the second half of the batter will become too runny.

Some other popular Air Fryer recipes to try out are-

How to roast eggplant in an Air Fryer For Baingan Bharta/ Baba Ganoush

Air Fried Roasted Red pepper Hummus

Indian Bread Rolls-Air Fried Potato Stuffed Bread Rolls

Vrat ke Palak Pakore-Gluten Free Spinach Fritters

Moving on to the recipe, here is the written recipe followed by the step by step pictorial one-

Air Fried Lauki Ke Kofte/Pakore

Aanchal Gupta

Crisp and healthy lauki ke kofte in air fryer. Can be eaten as is like a pakora/fritter or in a curry.

Print Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 10

Total Time 20

Servings -18 koftas

Ingredients

1 cup grated lauki/bottlegourd/zucchini
1/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp Gramflour/besan/chickpea flour
2 tbsp Rice flour
1/8 tsp Baking Soda
1 tbsp oil
3/4 tsp coriander seeds coarsely pounded
3/4 tsp minced ginger
1/2 tsp minced green chili/jalapeno
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
salt as per taste start with 1/2 to 3/4 tsp and do a taste test and add more if needed

Instructions

Preheat Air Fryer at 370 F for 5 minutes
Squeeze out water from the lauki/zucchini by gently pressing in between your palms
Meanwhile mix all the ingredients. Do not add any water. The lauki releases water when salt is added and that’s enough to bind the dough
Place dropfuls of dough in an greased air fryer basket
Spray some oil on top and air fry at 370 F for 7 minutes
Spray/brush some oil and flip the koftas/pakoras/fritters
Spray and air fry at 400 F for 3 minutes. Do an additional 2 minutes if needed, to make it more golden brown

Notes

Do not add any water. Depending on the water content of the lauki/bottle gourd/zucchini, adjust the besan/gramflour. If dough feels too runny, add an additional tbsp. The last 3 minutes at 400 F are to make it crisp and golden. Do it cautiously after 3 minutes. If you have a small air fryer and not able to make all of it at the same time, add salt to only half the quantity otherwise by the time you are ready to put in the second batch, the dough will become too runny. Air Fryers vary so its best to cook for a minute less, check and then continue cooking.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Here is the step by step pictorial recipe-

Ingredients