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Masal Vadai

Revathi Palani
Masal Vadai is a crispy fried South Indian | Tamil Nadu snack make with Chana Dal. It is perfect to serve in the evening as a tea time snack.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine Indian
Servings 15

Youtube Video

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Cup Chana Dal
  • 1 Tbsp Whole Urad Dal
  • 1 Tbsp Raw Rice
  • 6 cloves Garlic
  • 1 inch Ginger Chopped
  • 2 Green Chilli
  • 1 tsp Fennel Seed
  • 1 small size Onion Finely Chopped
  • 1 sprig Curry Leaves Finely Chopped
  • ½ tsp Salt Adjust as needed
  • Oil For Frying ( I used Sunflower oil)

Instructions
 

  • First wash and soak the Chana Dal, urad dal and raw rice in sufficient water for about 5 hrs.
  • Add Garlic, Ginger, Green Chillies, Fennel Seeds to a mixie / food processor and grind it coarsely. Just a few pulses is enough.
  • Drain the water from the dals. Add 2 Tbsp of the dal to the mixing bowl and keep it aside. Add the remaining soaked lentils to the mixie and grind it to a very coarse paste. Transfer the coarse mixture to the mixing bowl.
  • Add the salt, curry leaves, chopped onion and mix nicely until combined into a dough. 
  • Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying. Take a small portion of the dough, roll it into a small ball and flatten it using palms of your hand. Refer to my video here
  • Fry them in oil at medium heat until they are nicely golden brown. Remove from hot oil using a slotted spoon. Drain the vadai on a paper napkin or kitchen paper towels.
  • Yummy parippu vada is ready. Enjoy hot with coconut chutney or tomato ketchup.

Notes | FAQ

- Drain the dal nicely before grinding. You should not add any water while grinding.
- Reserving 2 Tbsp of the dals before grinding is to give a nice texture to the vadai.
- Do not grind to fine smooth paste. The ground paste should be coarse to give the vadai a nice texture.
- You can use Dry red chillis instead of Green Chilli. Also, small onion instead of regular one.
- If you dont find raw rice, instead add rice flour to the ground dal paste.
- Fry in medium flame and in batches, so that the vadai gets a chance to cook through till the center.
- Optionally, you can add chopped cilantro / coriander leaves along with the curry leaves.