Ulunthu Vadai
Ulundu (in Tamil) is called urad dhall, ie white lentil with its black skin removed.
I love this as a snack, best eaten with dhall curry or coconut chutney, but I prefer it as it is...piping hot with some chicken curry.
Shaping this vadai (with the hole in the middle) requires some skill and speed which I sorely lack, but I pulled through given some oil splashes on my wrist. (I'm so not doing this again). I suppose it's all worth it when I sink my teeth in it.
here's how to do it.
2 cup Urad dall
1 cup rice
finely chop
1 Green chillies
finely chop
1 Green chillies
5 Small
onion
10 Curry
leaves
1 tsp fennel seed - slightly crushed
1 tsp fennel seed - slightly crushed
1 tsp Pepper
Salt
- to taste
Soak the dhall and rice in water for about 4 hours, drain completely. Put the dhall and rice in a blender. Here's the tricky bit, you need to blend it with as little water as possible. I usually sprinkle very little water as I blend, until the mixture is blended.
Note: be prepared for your blender to struggle a bit.
The batter should not be a smooth consistency or runny but paste like.
Scrape the batter into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients, mix well and keep aside.
The
batter should be thick at this point. See the pic above. Heat oil in a frying pan.
Take a polythene sheet slightly greased with a drop of oil, NOT WATER.
Wet right hand, then make a small ball out of the batter and pat it on the cover. Now make a hole in the middle and carefully transfer it to the wok. This is the dangerous bit, if your hand is too wet, you know the rest, so please be careful.
Note: if your batter is runny, then there is no way you can form a ball and poke a hole. If that happens put 1 -2 tsp of rice flour and give it a good mix, that should firm up the batter.
Take a polythene sheet slightly greased with a drop of oil, NOT WATER.
Wet right hand, then make a small ball out of the batter and pat it on the cover. Now make a hole in the middle and carefully transfer it to the wok. This is the dangerous bit, if your hand is too wet, you know the rest, so please be careful.
Note: if your batter is runny, then there is no way you can form a ball and poke a hole. If that happens put 1 -2 tsp of rice flour and give it a good mix, that should firm up the batter.
Fry the vadai in medium flame, turn over to other side once it turns golden brown. Take out and drain it in a tissue once it becomes golden brown on both sides.
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