Medhu Vadai (savory fried snack)

Growing up I enjoyed medhu Vadai as a treat during festivals. Later in life we made it whenever we had a hankering for a savory fried snack or when we saved some of the urad dal batter used in making idli batter.

Ingredients:

Whole Urad dal ( skinned black gram)- 1 cup

Salt - 1/2 tsp ( to taste)

Onion - 1 medium cut into small pieces

Ginger - 1 inch cut into small pieces

Green chillies - 2 to 3 de-seeded and cut into small pieces

Curry leaf - 4 to 5 leaves

Cilantro - a few leaves ( without the stem)

Rice flour ( optional) - 1 to 2 tbsp

Baking soda - 1 pinch

Water

Oil - 2 to 3 cups for frying

Ziploc bag, or plastic wrap ( in India we use a banana leaf)- used to form the vadas

Instructions:

1. Wash the urad dal and then soak it in water until completely submerged. Soak for at least 3 to 4 hours
2. Drain the water out
3. Grind the urad dal without adding too much water - add a few tablespoons to begin with and grind ( you can use a blender or a Indian wet grinder).
4. Grind until it is a smooth fluffy paste.
5. Pour into a bowl and mix it with your hands or a spoon for a few minutes to make it airy
6. Add the cut onion, ginger, chillies, curry leaf, cilantro, baking soda to the batter. Optional : You can add a few tablespoons of rice flour, this makes the vada crispy 
7. Heat oil to 375 F ( in fryer) , if using a saucepan heat up oil- and test the temperature - it is at the correct temperature when you add a little glob of batter to the oil and it turns golden brown and rises up slowly. ( note : oil is too hot if the the batter gets black and rises up too fast , too cold if the batter sticks to the bottom). Turn down the heat to medium.
8. Add a little oil to the ziploc bag and spread it around in a thin film. Take the batter and place it on there and flatten it. Make a small hole in the middle to resemble a donut.
   
   
   
9. Slide the vada slowly into oil. Fry until golden brown and turn it over to make sure both sides are cooked until golden brown.
10. Take the vada out with a skimmer ( app on with holes) to drain the oil and place in a plate lines with paper towels to drain the oil.
11. Vada is ready to serve with coconut chutney (coconut chutney)