Medu vadai or Ulundhu vadai is a traditional favourite of South India that features not just in everyday cuisine but is also an indispensable part of the menu on festivals and puja days.
No South Indian breakfast is complete without these golden brown vadais crisp on the outside and soft and white inside served with piping hot onion sambhar and white coconut chutney.
It also doubles up as a snack .
It is a healthy,high protien dish.
Grind the batter with just enough water to make a soft but not watery dough – as it’s the consistency of the batter that determines how soft and shapely the vadais turn out, and of course how many compliments you reap! after all, ‘medu’ means soft, and the vadais must live up to the name.
The batter should be light and fluffy.
Take some ground batter and drop it in a bowl of water.If it floats,the batter is ready.
Take care to make the vadais as soon as the batter is made, as they will absorb too much oil if left to ferment. Also, forget not the hole in the centre for it is the defining feature of medu vadais!
Ingredients
1 cup urad dal (split black lentils)
1 teaspoon rice flour
3 green chillies , roughly chopped
3 to 4 peppercorns
8 to 10 curry leaves
1 tsp ginger
salt to taste
Oil for deep frying
Method
1.
Clean, wash and soak the urad dal in enough water for atleast 2 hours.
2.
Drain, add the rice flour,green chillies, pepper, curry leaves and ginger and blend in a mixer to a smooth batter, adding little water.
3.
Add the salt and mix well and divide the mixture into 8 equal portions. Keep aside.
4.
Wet your hand, take a portion of the mixture and make a hole in the centre with your thumb.
5.
You can even use a banana leaf to shape a vadai.
6.
Heat oil in a kadhai, upturn your hand and drop the wada in oil.
7.
Deep fry the vadai till both sides turn golden brown in colour.
8.
Repeat with the remaining batter to make 7 more medu vadai.
9.
Drain on absorbent paper. Serve hot with fried coconut chutney and sambhar
