Halloumi 65 is inspired by Chennai’s famous chicken 65 dish. This fun vegetarian take puts squeaky halloumi to work in a chilli & garlic yoghurt sauce. Start by making oven-fried halloumi nuggets with my delicious, crispy batter. Toss it in the sauce along with crunchy onions and peppers. Serve as it is, in a wrap or my favourite way - which is with fries.
Prep Time35 minutesmins
Cook Time20 minutesmins
Total Time55 minutesmins
Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: cheese, chilli, halloumi, vegetarian
Servings: 4
Author: Sanjana
Ingredients
450ghalloumi
For the coating:
50gcornflour
50gself-raising flour
2tbspyour favourite mayoI used Hellmann’s Vegan mayo
1tspblack pepper
1tspgarlic powder
1tspKashmiri chilli powder
1/4tspsalt
2tspEnglish mustardor 1 tsp dried mustard powder
8-10curry leavesfinely chopped
2tbsplemon juice
1tbspoilI used rapeseed
25mlwater
Spray oil
For the sauce:
1tbspoilI used rapeseed
6large cloves garliccrushed
10curry leaves
2green chilliescut lengthways
2dried red chillies
1green peppercut into bite-sized pieces
1red onioncut into bite-sized pieces
2tspyour favourite chilli sauce
150gplain yoghurt
2tspKashmiri chilli powder
1tbspcornflour
150mlwater
1tbspchopped coriander leaves
Salt to taste
Instructions
For the halloumi:
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6.
Drain the halloumi and cut into large bite-sized chunks. Place it in a bowl and cover with boiling water. This will soften the halloumi pieces up beautifully and also remove excess saltiness. Allow to soak for 5 minutes. Drain.
Place the halloumi in a large bowl and add the cornflour, self-raising flour, vegan mayo, English mustard, black pepper, garlic powder, Kashmiri chilli powder, curry leaves, lemon juice, oil and water. Use your hands to gently mix everything together and coat the halloumi pieces. the batter should be thick and quite sticky.
Line two or three large baking trays with parchment paper and spray lightly with cooking oil. Arrange the halloumi pieces on the baking parchment, leaving a 2cm gap between each one.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, turning half way through the cooking time to ensure even browning.
To make the sauce:
Whisk together the yoghurt, cornflour and chilli powder until smooth.
Heat the oil in a pan. Add the oil, garlic, curry leaves, dried chillies and fresh chillies in rapid succession. Sauté for a few seconds until the garlic browns very slightly.
Next, add the onions and peppers. Mix well. Add the yoghurt mixture, chilli sauce and 100ml water. Stir well. Stir continuously while cooking over a over medium heat, until the sauce thickens. Season with salt but remember the halloumi is salty so don’t be too generous with it.
Add the crispy halloumi pieces and stir to coat. Cook for 1-2 minutes to heat the halloumi through. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Serve immediately for maximum crispiness. Having said this, this still tastes great reheated the next day. For breakfast... #SorryNotSorry.
To air fry the halloumi nuggets, place the batter-coated pieces in a SINGLE LAYER inside the greased basket of the airfryer. Ensure they're not touching each other and that there's a gap between each one or they will stick together. Spray liberally with oil. Air fry at 200°C/400°F for 8-10 minutes. You might need to cook them in batches.
Store leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Leftovers might be a little dry as the sauce will soak into the batter. You can always bake them in the oven or air fry them to reheat through. They'll turn into halloumi nuggets. Delish!