The best-loved of all Burmese fritters: thin batons of peeled bottle gourd cloaked in a turmeric-gold chickpea batter and deep-fried until shatteringly crisp. A teatime and breakfast staple, served with a sweet-sour tamarind dip.
Burmese fritters, known collectively as a-kyaw, fill the glass cases of every teahouse and the baskets of roadside hawkers, descending from the Indian pakora tradition brought during colonial times. Bu thi kyaw, made from humble bottle gourd, rose to become the most popular of them all, cheap and satisfying through monsoon and cool season alike. Burmese diners famously crumble them into a steaming bowl of mohinga for extra crunch.
The crust crackles loudly at first bite, giving way to a soft, almost melting strand of gourd within. Earthy turmeric and a whisper of chili meet the tangy tamarind dip for a snack that is light yet impossible to put down.
Chickpea flour batter fries into a rigid, porous shell because its proteins set fast in hot oil while trapping steam from the watery gourd inside. A touch of baking soda releases gas bubbles that make the crust lacy and extra crisp.
Variations
Onion fritters (kethi kyaw), split-pea fritters (pe kyaw), spinach fritters, prawn fritters
On the Palate
Where Bu Thi Kyaw sits in the Burmese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4How it's made
8 steps · 20 min
- 18 min
Peel a bottle gourd and slice it into thin, even batons.
- 25 min
Whisk chickpea flour with rice flour, turmeric, chili powder, salt, and water into a thick batter.
Watch outWhisk the chickpea batter thick enough to coat and cling to the batons — too thin and it slides off and won't fry into a crisp shell.
- 32 min
Add baking soda and a little oil to the batter for extra crispness.
- 45 min
Heat oil in a wok to a steady frying temperature.
- 53 min
Dip the gourd batons in batter, letting excess drip off.
- 612 min
Fry in small batches until deep golden and crisp, turning once.
Watch outFry in small batches to deep golden and crisp — crowd the wok and the oil cools, the shells go pale and soak up grease.
- 72 min
Drain the fritters on a rack or paper to keep them crunchy.
- 82 min
Serve hot with a sweet-sour tamarind and chili dipping sauce.
