Masala Vada(parippu wade) is a fried lentil snack that is made by grinding lentil into a paste along with spices, then deep fried in a shape of a patty. It is a famous street food in Sri Lanka and Southern India, commonly sold by food cart vendors and is a popular teatime snack.
Ingredients:
250G OF YELLOW SPLIT PEAS (1 ¼ US CUPS)
3 SPRIGS OF CURRY LEAVES (APPROX. 30)
¼ CUP OF CHOPPED ONIONS
2 GREEN CHILLIES CHOPPED
2 RED CHILLIES CHOPPED
1 TSP CHILLI FLAKES
¾ TSP OF SALT
½ TSP PEPPER
1 TSP CUMIN SEEDS
OIL FOR DEEP FRYING
Directions:
1: Rinse the 1 ¼ cups of yellow split peas well and soak for 45 minutes, until soft.
2: Drain the soaked peas completely and add them into a food processor in small portions. Grind until medium coarse texture. (It is okay if a few whole split peas remain as it'll give a nice chunky texture.
3: Add the chopped curry leaves, onions, green chilies, red chilies, chili flakes, salt, pepper, and cumin seeds into the split peas paste and mix well.
4:Take a nice golf ball-sized portion of the Vada mixture to your palm and make a ½ inch thick patty by flattening it. The mixture should hold the shape well and not fall apart. If it does not bind well, take a small portion of the mixture and grind again. Then add it back to the rest of the mixture and mix well.
5:Heat oil in a pan for deep frying. Do the heat check by dropping a tiny piece of the mixture into the hot oil to see if it bubbles. Gently slide the Vada one after the other from the sides to the hot oil. Fry on medium heat until it turns golden brown in color (Do not disturb them after adding to the oil to prevent it from breaking). Wait until it's firm to flip it.
QUICK TIP – I usually fry it twice to get a perfect golden crisp. For this, remove all the Vada before it's golden brown in color, and then once all are done, deep fry it again by adding it to the same oil until it's golden brown and crispy. 6. Transfer them to a plate on a paper napkin to drain excess oil. Serve with hot tea as a teatime snack.
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