My favorite variation, called beguni, is a Bangladeshi-style pakora that employs thinly sliced eggplant planks for a tempura-like final product.

Many of our mothers would fry up fresh pakora, a crunchy, chickpea- and veggie-based fritter, alongside verdant chutneys on any given afternoon and, of course, on holidays and other festive gatherings.

Fry a few pakoras at a time for 5 to 7 minutes, turning the pakora occasionally with a skimmer or slotted spoon to promote even browning.

If you're new to frying foods, a thoughtful pakora recipe can serve as a crash course with little room for failure.

His pakora arrives, and it’s terrific, wispy onion strings whose chickpea flour coat is lit with green chiles, curry leaf and ginger.