Masala vada/Masal vadai Recipe | Paruppu Vadai

Masala vada/masal vadai is one among the favorite snack of tamil nadu . Masal vadai are the crispy delight prepared from channa dal soaked and ground in to coarse paste in which onion, green chilli , ginger,fennel seeds and salt is added, after which they are shaped and deep fried in hot oil till golden and crispy beauties. slurrrp !!! mouth watering right?? My mom never fails to make these in rainy days so i learn’t to make masala vada from her .. lets quickly look into the ingredients and method to make these delicious vadas..

Ingredients

Channa dal/Bengal gram dhal- 1 cup
Onion-1 no ( finely chopped)
Green chillies-3 nos ( finely chopped)
Fennel seeds/ sombu-1 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Mint leaves – 4- 5 ( chopped)
Ginger – 1 inch piece

Salt as needed

Method

Soak Channa dal for 3 – 4 hours. After 3-4 hours drain channa dal completely.
Grind the batter to a coarse mixture without adding any water. I usually remove a handful of soaked dal before grinding and add them after I am done grinding.
Note: Don’t grind too long as we don’t want the batter to become a paste.
Mix onions, green chillies, ginger, fennel seeds .cut mint leaves curryleaves salt and cut curry leaves.

In a kadai heat oil , at the same time make vadai by taking a portion of the batter and flattening them between your palm.

Now deep fry the shaped vadai in hot oil fry the vadai till golden in color. Do the same for the rest of the vada mixture and fry them in low heat.
Lower the flame after you drop all vadai and cook in medium flame until done , keep flipping from one side to other frequently. Drain it in paper towel.
Serve hot with coconut chutney as side dish or enjoy it as is .

You can serve even with Tomatillo cilantro chutney Click here

Tips

Soak the channa dal well till it breaks when you try with your fingers, if its not soaked well the vadai will turn hard.
You an skip onion and add cabbage or spinach as well.
Green chillies can be skipped and you can use red chilli, but make sure you grind them with channa dal.
Flatten the vadai well in between your palms and press it , even that helps in making crispy vadai.
Leftover Vadai can also be used for making vadacurry.
Crush these masala vadas in White peas/ vatana gravy sundal top it with onion, coriander leaves and enjoy!!