Konkani Neer Phanas Phodi | Goan Style Nirpanasachyo Fodi | Breadfruit Fritters | Jeev Kadgi Kapa | Neer fanas Rava Fry | Jeegujje | Kadachakka | Sheema chakka Tawa fry recipe with detail instructions and a video. Neer Phanas Kapa / Phodi or Nirpanasachyo Fodi are Goan special shallow fried fritters made from breadfruit. The recipe name is derived from the word ‘nirpanas’ or ‘neer phanas’ which is the Konkani word for breadfruit and ‘fodi’ meaning shallow fried pieces.
Breadfruit is found in the coastal region of southwestern India, mainly in the states of Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala. It is referred to as ‘nirpanas’ in Konkani by the Goans. In Marathi, it is called as ‘neer phanas’ or ‘nir fanas’. It is called by different names like ‘breadfruit’, ‘jeev kadgi’, ‘kadachakka’, ‘jeegujje’, ‘sheema chakka’ in the rest of India. It has a thick light green or yellowish green rough outer surface with a cream coloured inner flesh. The outer surface is covered with flat blunt spikes. It is starchy in nature.
Picking the right Neer Phanas for Kapa
For making fodi, we need to ensure that the neer phanas is perfectly ripe. An unripe breadfruit will spoil your dish, while an over ripe one tastes like banana. So it is important to learn to identify a perfectly ripe produce. A ripe nirpanas is yellowish green or parrot green in colour and bigger in size. Also the flat blunt spikes on the outer surface are well spaced and spread out. An unripe breadfruit is small in size and has a darker green colour. Also the spikes on an unripe breadfruit are closely packed together.
Prepping for Neer Phanas Phodi
For the recipe, the outer green skin needs to be peeled off and discarded. Also the inner hard core needs to be removed and discarded. The cream colored inner flesh needs to be sliced into half inch thick semicircular slices. You can refer to our post on ‘How to cut a breadfruit‘ for cutting instructions and storage tips.
In Goan cuisine, we make shallow fried fritters from many veggies like potato, sweet potato, ridge gourd, raw banana, etc. The basic ingredients used and the method of making different fodi remains similar. These fodi are served as a side dish with rice/dal. Usually fodi are prepared on days when we eat pure vegetarian food and cannot fry fish. Thus, instead of rava fry fish, Goans consume rava fried vegetable fodi. It is very easy and quick to prepare nirpansachyo fodi. The breadfruit pieces are first seasoned with salt and coated with a simple paste of turmeric and red chilli powder. They are then coated with a mixture of rice flour and semolina and shallow fried in coconut oil till golden and crisp.
You might also like to read our post or watch our video for making Neer Phanas Bhaji!!
Ingredients
- Breadfruit slices
- ¼ cup fine semolina
- ¼ cup fine rice flour
- 1 Tsp turmeric powder
- 1½ Tsp red chilli powder
- salt as per taste
- coconut oil
Instructions
- Wash the breadfruit slices. Apply salt to all the slices. Keep aside for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, wash the breadfruit slices once again.
- Make a thick paste of turmeric powder, chilli powder and 1 – 2 Tsp of water. Coat the breadfruit slices on all sides with this paste.
- Mix rice flour and semolina in a plate. Coat the breadfruit slices with this mixture.
- Heat a tawa. Grease the tawa with coconut oil.
- Place the coated breadfruit slices on the tawa.
- Drizzle oil on the upper side of the breadfruit slices.
- After 3 – 4 minutes, flip over the slices and cook on the other side. Drizzle oil on the upper side.
- Flip over and cook the slices on both the sides till the sides are golden brown and the breadfruit is soft. You can poke a breadfruit slice with a spoon and check whether it is soft.
Tips & Tricks
- You can refer to our post and video for detail instructions on how to cut breadfruit.
- After cutting, soak the breadfruit slices in water until use else they will turn black.