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Medu Vada

Ingredients

  • 1 1/3 cup split urad daal (white)
  • 1/4-1/3 cup water (reserved from soaking daal)
  • 1 Tbsp rice flour
  • 1/4 cup diced onion
  • 1 serrano pepper
  • 1 handful cilantro
  • 1.5 tsp ginger (freshly grated)
  • 7 curry leaves (chopped)
  • 3/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
  • 1 pinch of asafoetida (hing)
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

  1. Wash your lentils (urad daal) really well under cold water. Soak in a bowl with water overnight (about 8 hours).

  2. The next day, drain out the water (reserving some of it for grinding). In a high-power blender, grind the daal in batches with a little bit of water at a time until you form a batter. The batter should resemble banana bread batter in thickness.

  3. Empty the batter out into a bowl. Now using your hand or a spoon, stir the vada batter in a clockwise fashion for several minutes. This technique will introduce air into the batter allowing for a fluffy vada.

  4. To test if your vada has been well aerated, take a tiny amount of the batter and drop it into a small bowl of water. If the batter is able to float, then it's good to go.

  5. Now add in the remaining ingredients - rice flour, salt, black pepper, asafoetida, onion, serrano pepper, curry leaves, ginger, cilantro. Combine gently.

  6. Now to form the vada. Have your oil in your pan ready to go. You will shape them as you fry them. Using wet hands, take a small scoop of the batter and flatten it onto your palms. Now using your thumb, form a hole in the center so it looks like a doughnut. Gently drop it directly into the oil. (This step can take a bit of practice.)

  7. Make sure your oil is not too hot or else the vada will be raw in the center. Fry on both sides until golden brown. Serve with your favorite chutneys and sambhar.