If yellow split peas aren’t something you use very often, get ready for a fabulous way to put them to use!
Crispy, spicy and flavorful, these Burmese yellow split pea fritters can be served as appetizers or the main course with your favorite dipping sauce. Â They can also be thought of as Burmese falafel and are wonderful served up in pita bread with veggies and drizzled with a refreshing yogurt sauce.
Most commonly referred to as Burma, the nation’s official name is the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, a sovereign state in Southeast Asia bordered by India, Thailand, Bangladesh, China and Laos. Â Burma’s cultural influences are as varied as their nation’s different ethnic groups and their cuisine covers the range of seafood, meat, poultry rice, noodles, wheat, potatoes, tomatoes, beans and a variety of fermented foods.
A simple and naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten free dish, these Burmese split yellow pea fritters are deliciously flavorful and can be prepped well in advance.
Let’s get started!
Rinse and soak the yellow split peas overnight. Â Be sure to thoroughly drain and pat them dry or the fritter mixture will be too wet.
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor.
Pulse the ingredients to form a semi-smooth and gritty paste with some chunks of peas. Do not over-process.
Form the mixture into patties (they will very moist). Cover and refrigerate the patties for at least 3 hours or overnight.
Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the patties on both sides until golden brown.
Serve with your choice of dipping sauce (eg, chili sauce). Â You can also use these fritters likeBurmese-style falafel with pita bread, veggies and a yogurt sauce.
Enjoy!
Burmese Yellow Split Pea Fritters (Baya Kyaw)
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried yellow split peas ,rinsed and soaked overnight and throughly drained and patted dry
- 1 medium yellow onions ,finely chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 red chili pepper ,minced (remove seeds if you prefer it not spicy)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 teaspoons fresh minced ginger root
- 2 cloves garlic ,minced
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients in a food processor. Make sure the peas have been thoroughly drained otherwise the mixture will be too wet. Pulse the ingredients to form a semi-smooth and gritty paste with some chunks of peas. Do not over-process.
- Form the mixture into patties (they will very moist). Cover and refrigerate the patties for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the patties on both sides until golden brown.
- Serve with your choice of dipping sauce or use as a Burmese-style falafel with pita bread, veggies and a yogurt sauce.
Nutrition
linda says
Question: after soaking all night, the spit peas are still pretty hard. Is that ok?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Yes, Linda, that’s perfectly normal. Happy fritter-making! :)
bob says
Hi Kimberly,
looking forward to trying the split peas, and thanks for the great tips and recipe for the schnitzel (So Thats How You Do It ) As good as the real thing
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks so much, Bob! :)
Monika says
The fritters are almost exactly a replica of an Indian recipe except we add red chilli powder and cumin and coriander powder
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Monika, I’m not familiar with Indian ones specifically, what is the name of the Indian dish?
Susan says
I’ve never been a fan of yellow split peas (my mother made split pea soup with yellow split peas when I was growing up, which was good, but I wasn’t a fan). However, I am always intrigued by cuisines from other parts of the world, and this is the first Burmese recipe I’ve seen, so I’m interested in trying it. I especially like the idea of these fritters being like falafel, which is one of my very favorite dishes.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I haven’t cooked a whole lot with yellow split peas either, Susan. I feel the same as you do about falafel and that reminds me that I keep meaning to publish my recipe for them and keeping forgetting. Thanks for the reminder!
Susan says
I would love to see your recipe for falafel!! I await it eagerly.
Paul edwards says
These are grown inbetween sugar cane planting to condition the soil over here. Cropping is imminent. Do you think fresh turmeric would work ? Its much easier to find than powder here.
Regards Paul.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That’s really interesting, Paul, thanks for sharing! Absolutely, fresh turmeric will work great.
Maryanne | the little epicurean says
I’m excited to try these! A new Burmese restaurant just opened in town and now I’m super interested in their cuisine!