The monsoons finally seem to be setting in. When the heavy showers pour down and we are forced to remain indoors, enjoying the sound of the rain and its torrent through our windows and doors, it’s a different feeling altogather.While some may hate the sight of the rains and the damage they do, romancing the rains is a trait most of us have knowingly or unknowingly cultivated!   

For some romancing the rains may mean getting drenched from top to bottom and enjoy the feel of raindrops all over, while for some it may mean getting hold of a book, slipping into the rug and have some great music in the background.  

For the food lovers and sometimes the non food lovers too, come rains and the immediate desire that stems up within is to have a cup of brewing hot tea and garam garam pakoras.An age old Indian combination that goes hand in hand with the rains! Tea with fritters especially on a rainy day seems to be an integral part of the Indian cuisine. No matter which part of India one hails from, Fritters are a loved lot JAll this with the company of your near and dear ones makes the rainy day a special day indeed!  

For me, the rains bring back the lovely childhood memories which I truly cherish. Come rains and my mother who was deft at cooking, dished out sumptuous pakroas and we as kids finished them up in no time. She made them out of the ingredients readily available in the kitchen and most of the times, we were treated with a round each of onion, potato and cauliflowers pakoras.The memories of my parents sitting in the wide balcony of the plush defense offices quarters, each with a cup of tea in their hands, watching the rains liven up their garden while we kids played around the house is still fresh in my mind.  

There is an absolutely wide range of pakroas to choose from. They can be made out of onions, potatoes, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, corn, paneer, brinjal, mushrooms and even bread. It’s hard to name all as there is just so much variety available and each part of India seems to have its own naming convention and preparation mode of these fritters. Now that Iam based in South, where “Bajji” is a synonym for Pakora , the latest addition in my list is the very much loved “Artikaya bajji “which is prepared out of raw bananas and “Mirchi Bajji “.The latter is a bit cumbersome to prepare at home as one needs to find the right kind of chillies.These are then slit to add finely chopped onions dashed some masalas and  lemon juice as a filling, just right to satisfy the craving for those who love the taste of the hot chilies. One can find these stalls in abundance over the roadsides with an eternal sea of people surrounding them. Accompanied with mint and coriander chutney or even tomato sauce, these fritters make the rainy days truly enjoyable.  

Though Iam a big fan of any kind of Pakoras, my favorite is “Urad dal Pakoras”.For preparing these, soak the Urad dal for around 3 hours before grinding it to a fine paste and then add green chilies, cumin seeds, coriander leaves, and finely chopped ginger pieces with salt to taste. Thereafter, make small round balls of the mixture and deep fry in oil.  

Hard rain crashing down from the skies , a cup of steaming tea with a plate of hot pakoras , music in the form of plitter platter of raindrops on a lovely evening ,  isn’t that a great way of romancing the rains?