Chandrapuri Vada

Chandrapuri Vada

This recipe actually actually appeared in the newspaper last week as part of an article on Nagpur Cuisine. Nagpur is a city in Maharashtra, and this dish seems to be a typical Vahradi (Vidharbha) dish. The article mentioned that these vadas are usually eaten with rice, but I find that a little odd and I suggest treating them as tea time snacks.

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup whole Moong dal
• 1/2 Cup Channa dal
• 1/4 Cup Toor dal
• 1/4 Cup kaali dal
• 1/4 Cup matki
• 1/4 Cup chawli / rongi
• 3 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp turmeric powder
• 1.5 Tsp red chilli powder
• 1 Tsp cumin powder
• 1 Tsp Coriander powder
• 1 Tblsp minced ginger
• 4 green chillies chopped fine
• Some fresh coriander leaves
• Some fresh curry leaves
•  Oil to fry

First, if you don't know your dal / lentils well, Google the ingredients so you have the right ones. Once you're ready, add all the lentils in a bowl and wash them 4-5 times in cool water. Soak these lentils for at least 6 hours. This is how they should look after that:

Now, we need to grind these lentils. The idea is to grind them coarsely and if you're new to the mixer-grinder operations (as I was) - this may be a little tricky: How coarse? How much time to grind? How much water to add? What I recommend  as a thumb rule is grinding 1.5 cups of lentils as a time - its more manageable. You will roughly need to add 1/4 cup of water to this while grinding. Also, do not go overboard with keeping the lentils coarse - just don't get it to a paste - anything less is good.

Once the lentils are ground, add the salt, turmeric, chilli powder, cumin and coriander powder and mix well. Now, add the ginger, green chillies, coriander and curry leaves. Now add 2 teaspoons of very hot oil to this mixture and stir well. That's it - heat the oil for frying and you're all set for frying these vadas.

I made small balls for frying, although the tradition method is small rounds with a hole in the center. That is too difficult for me! If you find that your dough just spreads in the oil as soon as you put it to fry, try adding a couple of handfuls of gram flour.

Serce with chutney or hot ketchup.