Vada Kari/ Vada Curry

 Having grown in Chennai, Vada Kari has always been a delicacy which we relished both at home and at restaurants like Saravana Bhavan. Recently in Northern Virgina, I was able to relive some of those memories at Karaikudi restaurant and decided to share with my readers my version of this recipe. The spice level for this dish can be adjusted based on your tolerance levels.

Ingredients:

For the vada:
1/2 cup of Bengal gram dhal
1 tbsp of toor dhal
4 red chillies
1 sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp of cumin seeds
oil for deep frying

For the gravy:
2 chopped onions
2-3 large tomatoes
1 green chilly
4 cloves of garlic
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 tsp of sambhar powder
1 tsp of garam masala
1/4 cup of coconut milk
coriander leaves for garnish
salt as required

Seasoning:
1 small stick of cinnamon
2 cloves
1/2 tsp of fennel seeds
1 tbsp of oil

Preparation:

1. Soak Bengal gram dhal and toor dhal for 2-3 hours. Grind them to a coarse paste along with red chillies and curry leaves. Add cumin seeds and salt to the paste. Make small vadas and deep fry in oil.

                                          
2. In a pan, add a tbsp of oil. Add the seasoning, as the nice aroma comes, add onions, garlic and green chilly. Saute well till the raw smell disappears. 

3. Puree the tomatoes and add the tomatoes and salt. 

5. Saute well, then add turmeric and sambhar powder.

6. Once the tomatoes become mushy, add garam masala and the vadas.  

6. Let it cook for 5 more minutes. Add the coconut milk and coriander leaves and bring it to boil. The dish is ready!

Urad dhal vadai/ulatham paruppu vadai/Medhu Vadai

   Urad dhal vadai is a healthy snack and is mostly made on pooja days. This is a very delicious treat as it can be eaten along with sambhar, rasam, chutney or yogurt.

 Serves up to 4 people
Preparation time: 30 minutes


Ingredients:

1 cup of urad dhal
2 green chilies
1/8 tsp of asafoetida
1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper/ crushed black pepper
10 curry leaves
salt as required
Oil for frying
 
Preparation:

1.Soak urad dhal for 3 hours in water. Drain the water and grind well with green chilies and salt together.

2. The curry leaves is finely chopped and add it to the ground mixture. Add the asafoetida and black pepper and mix well.

3.First wet the palm, then make a small patty in the palm and put a hole with the thumb. Transfer gently to the preheated oil. 

 4.Once the patty turns golden  brown, urad dhal vadai is ready.