A southern dish which is a good combination with Idli and Dosa. I tasted it first in Chennai. My husband keeps on asking me to cook this vada curry. I haven’t tried to cook it before and this was the first time I tried it and it came out. I followed the recipe from a supplementary cooking magazine and adapted it to my ease. Here’s how I cooked it.
Preparation Time : 2 hrs
Cooking Time : 50 mins
Serves : 4
INGREDIENTS REQUIRED
For making vada
Chana dal – 1 cup
Red chillies – 4
Fennel seeds – 1/2 tsp
salt – 1 tsp
For making curry
Oil – 2 tbsp
fennel seeds – 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon – 2 inch piece
Cardamom – 3
Cloves – 3
Onion – 1(big sized, chopped)
Green chillies – 3 (sliced)
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp
Garam masala powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Coriander leaves – a few
Mint leaves – a few
Water – 5 cups
For Grinding
Grated coconut – 1/2 cup
Cashews – 2
METHOD
1.Wash and Soak chana dal in water for 2 hours. After that drain the water completely and add it to a blender along with fennel seeds, dried red chillies and salt ground it just like we make masala vada. Heat oil for frying .when the oil is hot make small vadas and fry it until it gets cooked inside the vada doesn’t have to turn golden brown outside. Then remove it from the oil. Let them cool down. Then crush them with hands into small pieces.
2. Heat oil in a pan, to it add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, fennel seeds. Let them splutter. Then add chopped onions, green chillies. Saute the onion to light golden. Add chopped tomatoes into it. Saute until the oil starts to appear at the sides. Add ginger-garlic paste, saute until the raw smell leaves. Place the flame in low and add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, coriander leaves and mint leaves. Add 2 cups of water and bring to boil.
3. When it started to boil nicely, add the crushed vadas to it. Mix well. Add 3 cups of water to it. Bring to a nice boil. Grind coconut and cashews into a smooth paste. Add the coconut paste to it. Allow cooking it for 3 minutes. Then switch off the flame.
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