Medu Vada

Medu Vada is a traditional south Indian food. They are usually served for breakfast, but they are available as a snack all through the day on the street stalls and the restaurants. They are made with urad dal and preferably eaten freshly fried, while still hot and crunchy. They are usually accompanied with Sāmbhar and coconut chutney. Vada can vary in shape and size, but are usually like doughnut, round and a hole in the middle.

Ingredients:

 
1    Cup of white urad dal
1    Tablespoon fresh ginger – fine grated or fine chopped
1    Medium green chili- Fine chopped
8    To 10 curry leaves – broken into small pieces
1    Teaspoon salt or to your taste
1    Pinch of asafetida or to your taste

Directions for preparing the Dal for vadha:


1.  In a bowl mix urad and wash, changing water several times until the water appears clear than soak the dal in 5 cups of water over night or at least 6 hours.

2. Once dal is soaked, rinse the water out and wash. Drain all the water out from the dal.

3. Now place the dal in the blender and grind it with as little water as you can. While grinding dal drop 1 to 2 teaspoons water little at a time to lubricate the dal paste for grinding.

4. Grind with switch on and off so that dal keeps mixing.

5. While grinding the dal in between stop the blender and open the cover and with a spatula mix the dal so that all the dal grinds evenly into a smooth paste.

6. Transfer the batter in a bowl and with a whisk or a spoon beat in a circular motion for few minutes so that the batter fluff up, add salt and mix. Paste should not be too watery it should be thick.

7. Take a cup of water and drop a little batter into the water, if the dal batter float  that means the batter is ready to fry, if it does not float then beat it little longer and test it again

8. Add asafetida, coconut flakes, curry leaves, chironji, chopped or grated ginger, chopped green chili and salt to the urad dal batter and mix.

Directions for frying the vadha:

1.  Heat 3 cups of oil in a medium size frying pan or a kadhi. For first 5 five minutes turn the heat high, once oil heats up turn the heat down to medium.

2.  To test if the oil is ready drop a small ball of paste in the hot oil, if it starts sizzling and float up it means it is the right heat but if it becomes too dark quickly it means oil is too hot, turn the heat down. The correct temperature is important.

3. Take a plastic sheet and flatten it on the cutting  board and rub  little water on it, now take a heaped teaspoon of the batter about a lemon sized ball and drop it on the plastic sheet and with the moistened fingers flatten it into a vadha. With the fingers make a hole in the center like a doughnut.

4. Lift the plastic with one hand and transfer the vadha on the other hands moistened fingers then drop it gently in hot oil, and repeat to make another vadha. Do not drop more than 5 to 6 vadha at a time. Keep the heat on to low.

5. At first the vadha will sink to the bottom of the pan, but do not try to move them, after 1 minute vadhas will puff up, with the pierced spatula turn the vadha to the other side. Keep turning the vadha around few times and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes on low heat so that inside of the vadhas get cooked, otherwise inside stay row and doughy.

6. Once the vadhas  become golden brown with the pierced spatula take them out of the oil, and place them on a plate over the napkin so that excess oil is absorbed

7. Once you take all the vadhas out of the oil, turn the heat down to low, because oil is hot and when you drop another batch of vadhas in the oil they will fried quickly from outside and inside they will stay raw.

8. Drop another batch of vadas then raise the heat to medium low and repeat the process until all  the vadhas are made.

7. Serve vadhas hot with Sāmbhar and coconut chutney.

Tips:

 
1.  The reason you make a hole in the middle so that inside of the vadha get cook and does not stay doughy.

 
Please take the time to let me know what you think about my recipe. Your comments would be helpful to me to improve the recipe.

Thank you      

Geeta Seth