Masala vada or chana dal vada is a popular crisp snack in southern India, especially in Tamilnadu. Masala vada is surely one in their menu list that you can get at any street side shop or restaurant. This vada is crispy and crunchy made with chana dal along with aromatic rich spices. It is most preferably taken as a tea time snack, so you can have these vadas with hot tea or coffee. In India, there are many variations to make these yummy vadas. The spices like which I added to this vada are fennel seeds with green chilli, ginger and also mint leaves gives an extra flavour which turns out to be a mouth watering snack.
Give a try this crispy vada and let me know your comments!!!
Masala Vada
Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup chana dal (bengal gram)
- 1 medium size onion finely chopped
- 2 green chillies finely chopped
- Few curry leaves
- Few mint leaves chopped
- 1¼ ginger garlic paste
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 2 dried red chillies
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
- 1 teaspoon fennal seeds (saunf)
- Salt to taste
- Pinch of turmeric (haldi)
- Oil for deep fry
Instructions
To make Masala Vada
- First, wash chana dal several times until water runs clear and than soak it in water for 2 hours.
- Next, drain off the water and set aside. Make sure that all water of the dal completely drained off.
- Take a blender jar, add cumin seeds, fennel seeds, dried red chillies, cinnamon stick.
- Blend it to make a coarse powder. Keep aside with 2 tablespoon soaked chana dal.
- Add the remaining dal into blender jar along with salt.
- Blend until it turns to a coarse mixture.
- Transfer into a bowl.
- Add chopped onion, green chillies, ginger-garlic paste, curry leaves, mint leaves and also masala powder we just made above.
- Mix all ingredients well. Add more salt if required.Take a handful of the mixture and make a ball. Flatten it into a tikki shape. Check it must binds well. It must have a good binding to shape them into vadas.
- Prepare all vadas from this mixture.
- Heat oil in a kadhai or deep pan on a medium flame.
- When the oil is hot enough than add prepared vada gently one by one.
- Add vadas 3 to 4 in each batch.Flip and fry on a medium flame until golden and crisp on both the sides.
- Take out when golden crisp.
- Transfer onto a plate or a kitchen tissue.Fry the rest of them with the same process.
- Masala vada is ready to serve.
- Enjoy with coconut chutney or ketchup or with tea.
Tips –
- The chana dal vada made with over soaked dal will not turn crisp.
- You can make them by adding some coriander leaves, if you do not have mint.
- The most important is to blend chana dal to make a coarse texture because if the dough has lot of moisture then the vada will not make crunchy and you can add rice flour or corn flour to fix the chana dal consistency.
- The vada shape must be flat and slightly thin by the edges.