Ulundu Vadai - South Indian Style

Step 1: Soak the Dal

Take 1 cup (250g) of urad dal, wash it thoroughly, and soak it in water for at least one hour.

Step 2: Grind the Batter

Drain the soaked dal and add it to a wet grinder. Start grinding without water, then add water little by little until you get a thick, smooth, and fluffy batter. The consistency should be like soft ice cream.

Step 3: Add Oil to Batter

About 2-3 minutes before you finish grinding, pour 50 ml of sunflower oil into the batter. This is a key tip to make the vadas soft and prevent them from absorbing excess oil.

Step 4: Check Batter Consistency

To check if the batter is ready, drop a small ball of it into a bowl of water. It should float immediately. This indicates the batter is light and well-aerated.

Step 5: Prepare the Vada Mixture

Transfer the ground batter to a large mixing bowl. Add the finely chopped onions, green chillies, ginger, curry leaves, coriander leaves, grated coconut, black pepper, cumin seeds, salt, and asafoetida.

Step 6: Add Flours and Mix

Add the rice flour and gram flour to the bowl. Mix everything together thoroughly, preferably in one direction, to combine all the ingredients without deflating the batter.

Step 7: Shape the Vadas by Hand

Heat oil in a pan for deep frying. Wet your palm with water, take a lemon-sized portion of the batter, and place it on your palm. Flatten it slightly and make a hole in the center using your thumb.

Step 8: Fry the Vadas

Gently slide the shaped vada into the hot oil. Fry on a high flame. After a minute or when the bottom side turns light golden, flip the vadas. Continue to fry, flipping occasionally, until they are golden brown and crispy on both sides. This takes about 4-5 minutes per batch.

Step 9: Alternative Shaping Method (for beginners)

If shaping by hand is difficult, take a small cup or tumbler. Cover its mouth with a plastic sheet and secure it with a rubber band. Wet the plastic surface, place a ball of batter on it, flatten it, make a hole, and then gently invert the cup over the hot oil to release the vada.

Step 10: Serve

Once the vadas are perfectly golden and crisp, remove them from the oil and drain them. Serve hot with sambar and chutney.

• Use fresh urad dal for a fluffier batter that yields more vadas.

• Grind the batter to a thick, fluffy consistency, adding water sparingly. A correctly ground batter will float when a small portion is dropped in water.

• Adding 50ml of oil to the batter towards the end of grinding makes the vadas softer and helps them absorb less oil during frying.

• Ensure the oil is sufficiently hot before dropping the vadas in; this prevents them from becoming oily.

• For beginners who find it difficult to shape vadas by hand, a small cup covered with a plastic sheet can be used as an easy shaping tool.

• You can crush the black peppercorns instead of adding them whole.

• The amount of green chillies can be adjusted according to your spice preference.