Vadacurry

My 88th recipe, “Vadacurry”, a famous side dish from the Tamil Nadu cuisine. Traditionally, Vadacurry is a dish made with leftover vadai. It was perfected by the local restaurants in Tamil Nadu which were looking for a way to use up the leftover vadai which they make the previous day. Though it was made from left over vadai, it was so delicious.

And overtime, its popularity had grown leaps and bounds. RK said that during his school days there was a Udipi restaurant in Chennai which used to sell Vadacurry for breakfast. They used to make a big bucket of the vadacurry at 7 AM. And it was so famous that it used to be Sold Out within 15 – 20 mins. You would have to wait until the next day to taste the wonderful vadacurry again.

He says that it is the second best vadacurry he has tasted so far. It is obvious which one is his most favorite. This recipe I am posting here is as authentic as it gets. I made the masal vadai yesterday just for making vadacurry for breakfast today. The vada curry is super delicious, full of wonderful flavors and perfect with my hot South Indian Idli or dosa 🙂

Vadacurry

Revathi Palani

Vadacurry is a famous side dish from the Tamil Nadu cuisine. Traditionally, Vadacurry is a dish made with leftover vadai. Perfect as a side for idli / dosa.

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Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 15 mins

Total Time 20 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• Masal Vadai - 7 broken into smaller pieces
• Green Chilli - 2 Slit
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Onion - 1 Large Finely chopped
• Tomato - 1 Large Chopped
• Salt - 1/2 tsp adjust as needed
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 Tbsp
• Red Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Coriander powder - 1 tsp
• Coconut Milk - 1 Cup
• Cilantro - To garnish

To temper

• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Cardamom Pods - 2
• Cloves - 4
• Cinnamon stick - 2 small
• Bay leaf - 1 Large
• Fennel Seeds - 1 tsp

Instructions

 

• First heat oil in a pan and add items listed under "To temper". Once the fennel seeds start to change color, add the green chilli, curry leaves and onion. Saute until the onion becomes translucent.
  
   
• Add the tomatoes, salt and continue to saute until it turns mushy.
  
   
• Add the ginger garlic paste, masala powders (turmeric, red chilli, coriander) and stir until combined well.
  
   
• Add about 1 Cup of water and the coconut milk and let it come to a boil.
  
   
• Immediately, reduce the flame to low-medium, add the masal vadai to the pan and cook until the water evaporates. By now the raw flavor of the masala would be gone and the vadai would blend with the masala. Garnish with cilantro.
  
   
• Serve hot with idli, dosai.

Notes | FAQ

- Vadacurry is traditionally made with left over vadai. In case you want to make it healthy, follow my Masal Vadai recipe to prepare the dough. Instead of frying them in oil, you can also make small balls and steam them. You can use the steamed vadai also in this recipe here.

- Adjust number of masal vadai required based on the size of our vadai.

- If needed, after adding the masal vadai, you can cook covered.