B&W Wednesday

Linked to :

Susan’s Black and White Wednesdays, hosted this week by Aparna

Dahi Vada

Cheating picture No.2. This was made as part of the Punjabi Thali two months back, now getting featured on its own.

Another interesting fact about me: My entire dress collection fits comfortably into a single rack of the standard wardrobe!

I simply don’t have any interest in that section anymore. I recently got two sets of dresses stitched, but they have been sitting inside the cover well over an year.

Enjoy the recipe.

Ingredients:

• Vada                                      :             8
• Yogurt                                  :             3 – 4 cups
• Salt
• Chili Powder                      :           1/2 tsp
• Roasted Cumin Powder     :      1/2 tsp
• Tamarind/Dates chutney :      2-3 tbsp

Method:

1. Check out this post for making vadas. Once they are cooked and taken out of the oil, put them in a bowl filled with hot water.
2. Let the vadas soak in the water for 4-5 minutes.
3. Whisk the yogurt so that there are no lumps. Add salt as required and chili powder and cumin powder.
4. Take the vadas from the bowl and squeeze out the excess water. Let them soak in the yogurt for at least half an hour.
5. Refridgerate and serve garnished with coriander and chat masala.

Linked to:

• Blogging Marathon 17, under Evening Tiffin theme
• Kid’s Delight, for this month’s theme : Snacks

Vada

I was eagerly looking forward to BM 17. The new apartment has more windows than walls and I was really looking forward to clicking some pictures in natural light. No more taking the food to the car park as I was doing in the previous house.

Well, now with the camera missing I just don’t know what to do. So I thought of posting recipes from the Thali meals I did for Valli’s Thali Mela.

And thought I will share some interesting facts to distract you all from the same old pictures.

Fact 1 : We don’t have television at home. Haven’t had one for the past 6 years. 

Enjoy the vada recipe when you get over the shock :)

Recipe Source : Tickling Palates

Ingredients:

• Urad dal                               :            1 cup
• Corn Flour                           :             2 tbsp
• Green Chilies                      :             2, chopped fine
• Onion                                     :             1/2 small, chopped fine (optional)
• Ginger                                    :              1/2 ” piece, chopped fine
• Whole Black pepper        :             4-5
• Curry leaves                        :              1 sprig, chopped fine
• Salt
• Oil for deep frying

Method: 

1. Wash and soak the dal for 30 – 40 minutes. Drain the water before grinding
2. In a wet grinder or mixie jar, grind the dal with a little water. Grind to get a smooth and thick batter . It should be thick, so add water, if required to help with the grinding, in tablespoons and don’t add more than 3 tbsp.
3. Add corn flour at the last stage of grinding so that everything is incorporated and you have a fine thick smooth batter.
4. Transfer the batter into a bowl. If you are making the vadas right away, keep the batter in the freezer for 10-15 minutes or leave it in the fridge till you need it.
5. Radhika has included a consistency check, which helped me a lot. She has mentioned that the batter should be thick enough not to fall down if you are scooping it up. It should also be so light, that a tiny portion (about 1/2 tsp) when dipped in water, should float and should not sink.
6. Heat the oil for deep frying in a pan.
7. Add onion, chopped ginger, curry leaves, chilies and pepper to the batter and mix well. In a clean plastic sheet (or a plantain leaf), place about 2 tbsp of the batter. Pat it into the vada shape (small doughnut shape) and put a hole in the middle. Keep dipping your fingers in a bowl of water  to help with the patting and shaping of the vada, else the batter will stick to your fingers.
8. When the oil is hot, gingerly take the vada out of the plastic sheet and slide it carefully into the oil. Be careful while doing this.
9. When the vada turns brown, flip it over and cook the top portion too. Take off the heat, drain in a kitchen towel. Finish the rest of the batter the same way and enjoy the vadas with coconut chutney.
10. Tip : I kept the batter in the fridge the whole time and was taking them out only at the time of shaping them.

Linked to :

• Blogging Marathon 17, under Evening Tiffin theme
• Kid’s Delight, for this month’s theme : Snacks