A banana fritter is a fritter made by deep frying battered banana or plantain in hot oil. It is a common dish across Southeast Asia and South India.
Varieties
Brunei
Banana fritters are a traditional snack in Brunei, where they are called . They are similar to pisang goreng in Indonesia and Malaysia. , a variant of made with honey, are popular as a light afternoon meal ().
Cambodia
In Khmer, banana fritters are called num chek chien (). They are made by dipping flattened bananas in a thick mixture of rice flour, sesame seeds, egg whites and coconut milk seasoned with salt and sugar and deep frying them in hot oil until crispy and golden. The Cambodian banana fritters are more savoury than sweet and are often eaten as a snack with coconut ice cream as a popular accompaniment. A famous banana fritter shop in Cambodia is Chek Chean Pises operating since 2000 that has two locations in Phnom Penh – at Mao Tse Tong Boulevard and Kampuchea Krom Boulevard.
India
South India
Vazhakkappam or pazham pori (), also known as ethakka appam, "boli", and bekachi is a fritter food with ripened banana or plantain and maida flour. A popular food item in South Indian cuisines, especially in Kerala, it is generally eaten as a breakfast or a snack. It is called as balekayi bajji () in Kannada, vazhakkay bajji in Tamil, and aratikaya bajji () in Telugu.
Pazham pori is principally made from bananas or plantain. Plantains are slit lengthwise after peeling and is dipped into a batter made from all-purpose flour, salt, turmeric powder and sugar. This is then deep-fried in oil until golden brown. In the other South Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, it is however prepared using besan flour.
Pazham pori is served usually along with tea or chai as a snack in the evening. In some restaurants in Kerala pazham pori is served along with beef.
Indonesia
In Indonesia, banana fritters are commonly known as pisang goreng. They are often sold by street vendors, In Indonesia pisang goreng are deep fried in ample of cooking oil; they might be coated with batter or not.
Plantain is often used instead of banana. Traditionally, some cultivars of banana such as pisang raja, pisang tanduk and pisang kepok are the most popular kinds of banana used for pisang goreng. These banana cultivars have a mild sweet and sour flavor and firm texture that will not crumble upon being fried. Pisang raja however, has a softer texture and a fragrant aroma. The banana is often battered and then deep fried in ample palm oil. Pisang goreng might be battered or plain deep fried. The batter most commonly uses a combination of flour, either wheat, rice flour, tapioca or bread crumb. Several recipes might add coconut milk or milk and vanilla extract into the batter to add aroma. Most traditional street vendors will then sell them as is, without any additional ingredients or toppings. However, more upscale coffee shops, cafes and restaurants serve more sophisticated pisang goreng sprinkled with powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, cheese, jam, condensed milk, chocolate or vanilla ice cream.
In Indonesia, it is consumed as a snack to accompany tea or coffee, either in the morning or late afternoon break. Traditional warung kopi (local coffee shops) often offer pisang goreng and other snacks, including fritters and kue to accompany coffee or tea.
Banana fritters along other kinds of fritters are sold on travelling carts or by street vendors throughout Indonesia. Other than pisang goreng, various kinds of ingredients are battered and deep fried such as tempeh, mendoan, tofu (tahu goreng), oncom, sweet potato, cassava chunk, cassava tapai, tapioca (cireng), vegetables (bakwan) and breadfruit.
Every regions in Indonesia has developed various recipe for pisang goreng with a variety of different names, ingredients and cooking techniques. In Bali for example, pisang goreng is called godoh biu, in West Java it is called cau goreng, in Java gedhang goreng, in Sibolga pisang rakit and in Pontianak pisang kipas.
Pisang goreng is usually sold together with other gorengan fritters including fried tofu and tempeh. However, Pisang goreng Pontianak are widely popular in Indonesia with certain retail outlets exclusively selling only this type of banana fritters.
Pisang goreng variants
Indonesia has many varieties of pisang goreng, including: Pisang goreng kipas or Pisang goreng Pontianak Refers to banana cut in the shape of a fan, battered, and deep fried. The term pisang goreng Pontianak is often used interchangeably with pisang goreng kipas, as both have a similar fan-like shape, but the former is often filled or served with kaya jam.