Tandoori gobi in air fryer step-by-step recipe with video and photos.
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What is tandoori gobi
Tandoori gobi is an easy-to-make snack made with cauliflower florets and a yogurt-spice marinade. Traditionally, the tandoori gobi is made in a tandoor or clay oven. However, here I am making this dish in an air fryer and tastes equally good. For a vegan alternative, replace yogurt with cashew and poppy seeds paste.
Ingredients
Cauliflower: Use fresh cauliflower with a tight and firm head.
Yogurt: Make sure the yogurt is thick. You may either hang the yogurt in a muslin cloth to remove the whey or use Greek yogurt.
Besan: Besan (gram flour/chickpea flour) is a key ingredient. Roast the besan on low flame to remove the raw smell.
Spices: I use garam masala, chilli powder, ginger powder, garlic powder, and chaat masala.
Ghee: I make this dish with ghee; however, you may replace it with any cooking oil of your choice.
I have earlier shared the recipe for gobi tikka in the oven. This dish is different from that in terms of the cooking methods and the spices used. To make Tandoori gobi in an air fryer, I prepare a marinade with yogurt, ginger, garlic, roasted besan, and spices. I marinate the cauliflower florets in the spice mix. I then air fry them for 8-10 minutes, flipping midway.
Selecting the right cauliflower
Make sure the cauliflower you choose to make tandoori gobi has a tight and firm head. The cauliflower florets should be compact and the leaves must be green and crisp. The colour of the head should be white or pale cream and it should not have any signs of brown and grey coloured spots.
Tips for making the best-tasting tandoori gobi
It is important to note that each brand of air fryer takes different times to cook. Also, the cooking time depends on the size of the cauliflower florets. My air fryer takes around 8 to 10 minutes to cook the cauliflower florets. Keep an eye after around 5 or 6 minutes to make sure it does not burn.
A key element of the marinade is besan (gram flour/chickpea flour). It is important to roast the besan well taking care it does not burn. Alternatively, you can grind ready-to-use roasted Bengal gram (hurigadle/puthani) into a fine powder and use that instead of besan. Since the cooking time of cauliflower in an air fryer is pretty less, using raw besan will make the marination taste under-cooked.
The yogurt used for marination must be very thick. Place yogurt in a muslin cloth and hang it for one hour so that all the whey can drain. Alternatively, you can use Greek yogurt.
Click here for more cauliflower recipes.
Bonus
This dish is:
- a very good vegetarian alternative for appetisers
- great to be served as finger food
- ready in less than 15 minutes
- perfect to be used as filling for wraps
Step by step instructions
1. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the marinade.
2. Coat the cauliflower florets with the marinade and mix well
3. Place the cauliflower florets in the air fryer basket
4. Air fry in batches for 8-10 minutes at 180℃, flipping once midway
Recipe card
Tandoori gobi in Air fryer
Ingredients
- 1 large cauliflower
FOR MARINADE:
- ½ cup yogurt see notes
- 1 tbsp besan (gram flour/chickpea flour) see notes
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder or to taste
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp ginger powder
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp chaat masala
- Salt to taste
- 2 tbsp ghee
Instructions
- Cut the cauliflower into florets
- Place the yogurt in a muslin cloth and hang it for an hour so that the whey drains out
- Dry roast the besan on low flame until the raw smell goes
- In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the marinade except ghee. Make sure there are no lumps and dry bits of spices
- Add ghee and mix everything well
- Coat the cauliflower florets with the marinade and mix well.
- Set aside for 15 minutes
- Place the cauliflower florets in the air fryer basket
- Air fry in batches for 8-10 minutes at 180℃, flipping once midway
- Serve hot with mint chutney
Video
Notes
- The yogurt used for marination must be very thick. Place yogurt in a muslin cloth and hang it for one hour so that all the whey can drain. Alternatively, you can use Greek yogurt
- Dry roast the besan on low flame until the raw smell goes. Alternatively, grind roasted Bengal gram (hurigadle/puthani) into a fine powder and use it instead of besan
- The time taken for the cauliflower to cook varies with the air fryer. Keep an eye after 5 minutes to see if it is done
Click here to watch tandoori gobi in air fryer web story.
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