Recipe for Nendram Pazham Bajji – Kerala Pazham pori – Ethakka appam – Banana Fritters. Many names but one sweet evening tea time snack.
Nendram Pazham Bajji or Pazham pori as its called in Kerala is an all time favorite snack of Malayalee’s. It is also called as Ethakka appam. This type of banana is called as Nendram in Tamil. This is a typical evening tea time snack. There are lot of shops in Coimbatore that sell this snack in the evening. Pazha bajji or sweet bajji as its called in Coimbatore is an extremely popular dish in the area. May be its due to its close proximity to Palakkad. My husband loves anything that has the flavor of bananas. May it be the banana muffins or the bajjis. Call it plantain fritters with pride to make you sound like a little Martha Stewart. Here is an awesome recipe for Nendram Pazham Bajji – Kerala Pazham pori – Ethakka appam – Banana Fritters. Many names but one sweet evening tea time snack.
Take two ripe nendram / ethakka plantain. Cut the top and the bottom of the plantain. Cut the plantain into half and peel the skin. Cut the peeled plantain into quarter inch strips. set aside.
Now lets prepare the batter. Take a bowl and add in the maida (all purpose flour), rice flour, salt, baking soda, sugar and turmeric. Take two cardamom pods and remove the seeds and grind the seeds in a mortar and pestle to a fine powder. Optional – you can also add a tablespoon of besan and a pinch of black sesame seeds. Add it to the bowl. Now add in the 3/4 cup of water. If the batter is very thick, start adding little water at a time. 2 tablespoons of water at a time. Add water carefully. Make sure the batter does not become thin. Mix well. The consistency of the batter is very important. It should be a thick batter so the batter adheres to the nendram.
Heat oil in a kadai till hot. Here is the consistency of the batter. The batter should nicely coat the plantain when dipped. Dip each strips of plantain in the batter and add it to the oil.
Fry the plantains until slightly golden on both sides.
Serve hot with tea or coffee.

Nendram Pazham Bajji – Kerala Pazham pori
Recipe for Nendram Pazham Bajji – Kerala Pazham pori – Ethakka appam – Banana Fritters. Many names but one sweet evening tea time snack.
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 4 persons 1x
Ingredients
Measurements Used – 1 Cup = 250 ml
- 2 Ripe Plantains (Nendram – Ethakka Variety)
- 1 cup Maida – All Purpose Flour
- 2 tablespoon Rice Flour
- 1 pinch of Baking Soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder for colour
- 1 pinch cardamom powder
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- 3/4 cup (Approximately) Water for the batter
- 500 ml Vegetable Oil for frying
- 1 tablespoon besan (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon black sesame seeds (optional)
Instructions
- Take two ripe nendram / ethakka plantain. Cut the top and the bottom of the plantain. Cut the nendram pazham into half and peel the skin. Cut the peeled nendram pazham into quarter inch strips. set aside.
- Now lets prepare the batter. Take a bowl and add in the maida (all purpose flour), rice flour, salt, baking soda, sugar and turmeric. Take two cardamom pods and remove the seeds and grind the seeds in a mortar and pestle to a fine powder. Add it to the bowl. Now add in the 3/4 cup of water. If the batter is very thick, start adding little water at a time. 2 tablespoons of water at a time. Add water carefully. Make sure the batter does not become thin. Mix well. The consistency of the batter is very important. It should be a thick batter so the batter adheres to the nendram.
- Heat oil in a kadai till hot. The batter should nicely coat the plantain when dipped. Dip each strips of plantain in the batter and add it to the oil.
- Fry the plantains until slightly golden. Serve hot with tea or coffee.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Tea time snack
- Cuisine: South Indian, Kerala
Thank you for the recipe, kannamma.
Brings back fond memories. My mom used to make this for breaking fast in ramadan. Oh the last ten min of fasting, with the aroma of pazhabajji, filling our house and hearts.
Definitely getting nendrampazham on my next visit to the indianstore. Thank you once again for the recipe and memories.
Thank you so much!