#1000Kitchens Recipe Drop: Pumpkin Flower Fritters

Snigdha Sur’s mother, Shakti, grew up in Madhya Pradesh (now Chhattisgarh), in a Bengali family that grew its own vegetables — pumpkin, squash, bottle gourd — all staples of Bengali home cooking far from Bengal. When she moved to the U.S. in 1987, her first homes were in the Bronx’s Parkchester and later Rego Park, both known for their Bengali immigrant enclaves. She found comfort and continuity through Jackson Heights, a hub for Indian groceries. “All Indian vegetables you get there,” she explained matter-of-factly. “Chingri, parval, everything.”

Even though Bengalis are known to be big fish eaters, they also have a deeply rooted vegetarian tradition that is seasonal and astonishingly inventive. In many ways, the region’s abundant produce — gourds, banana stem, raw jackfruit, pumpkin, eggplant, taro, and dozens of seasonal greens (known as shaak) —defines the cuisine. Nothing is wasted: peels (khosa bhaja) become fritters, stems (data) are stewed, and overripe vegetables turn into mash (bhorta). Even flowers (phool bhaja) — like the Surs’ beloved pumpkin blossoms — are dipped in batter and fried. A simple pumpkin plant can yield 10 different dishes when used from root to bloom — a zero-waste approach to cooking practiced long before it became a buzzword. 

The phooler bora is eaten at the start of a meal, sometimes with moong dal and rice. Before it is cooked, a flowering pumpkin plant is a thing of beauty. Sheer yellow petals, bright as marigolds, traversed by pale green veins, burst outwards in exuberant radiance. Snigdha prepares the batter by instinct: rice flour, a pinch of salt, a dusting of sugar, a scattering of nigella seeds that release their scent only when the oil warms. Sometimes she adds cornstarch to keep the fritters crisp for longer. She removes the stamens, dips the blossoms in the pale batter, and lowers them into the shimmering surface of oil for two to three minutes. They emerge golden and delicate, with edges curled like lace.

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RECIPE FOR PHOOLER BORA

Serves: 2–3
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

8–10 fresh pumpkin flowers (male blossoms)
½ cup rice flour
1–2 tablespoons cornflour (optional; for extra crispiness)
½ teaspoon nigella seeds (kalonji)
1 pinch sugar
Salt to taste
Water, as needed
Oil for deep or shallow frying

Method

Rinse the pumpkin flowers gently and pat dry. Remove the stamen from inside each flower.
In a mixing bowl, combine the rice flour, cornflour (if using), nigella seeds, sugar, and salt.
Add water gradually to form a thin, smooth batter. The batter should be pourable and coat the flowers lightly.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium to medium-high heat (about 170–180°C / 340–350°F).
Dip each flower into the batter, ensuring it is evenly coated, then carefully place it into the hot oil.
Fry for 2–3 minutes on each side, or until golden and crisp.
Remove and drain on paper towels.
Serve immediately. Traditionally eaten with moong dal and rice, but also works as a snack.

Words by Sneha Mehta. Images by Shravya Kag.
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