Medu Vadai or Ulundu Vadai is a traditional South Indian breakfast /tiffin dish. It's popular all across India not just in everyday cuisine but also as an indispensable part of the menu on special occasions like festivals and weddings. Made with urad dal/black lentils, this fried crispy snack is delicious to taste & easy to make.
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What Is Medu Vadai
South Indian food has so much versatility! Growing up, we never realized how amazing our food was because for us it was just everyday food. When in college, I saw my Gujarati friends go ga-ga over my lunchbox, I was surprised and intrigued. When I asked my mom about it, she mentioned that she too had noticed this when she moved to Bombay post her marriage to my dad. She told me that she would find it quite amusing when neighbors would come to ask her recipes for Idli/Dosa/Sambhar and Medu Wada. Only moving to this city made her realize that South Indian food was loved by all and it had gained a popularity that she had never imagined. Having experienced something similar myself, I felt a bit proud of me being a South Indian and of having experienced the food first hand.
Masala Dal Vada Vs Medu Vada
There are a lot of similarities between Medu Vada and Dal Vada. Both these fritters are a South Indian specialty! They both are made from lentils but just the kind of lentils used are different. Both are fried snacks and both have a cult following! I am always team Dal Vada. I prefer that over Medu Wada any day!
I have been around South Indian food all my life but for some weird reason, I was never a fan of Medu Wada. As strange as it sounds, its true. I have been ridiculed by my family and friends all these years for disliking this lip smacking snack, medu wada. There is no particular reason for my dislike but whenever my mom made this, I would barely touch it. She would prepare it as an offering to lord Hanuman and therefore insist me to at least have 1 wada as it was considered as prasadam. I would unwillingly take a bite and that was it. I have always preferred Masala Dal Vada/Lentil Fritters over this. Since I never ate this when my mom made it, I chose to give up on it after her. The logic being, if I didn't eat the ones made by my mom, I could not eat those made by anyone else too. That is the reason even today I am unable to eat medu wada but have no qualms of making it for others.
Ingredients needed 🧾
Urad Dal -
Rice - raw rice is added to the Medu Vada batter. Doing this will yield crispy Medu Vadai.
Aromatics - green chillies, GF asafoetida, fresh curry leaves, and ginger are added to the vada batter to make it flavorful and aromatic.
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While these Medu Wadas make for a great party snack/appetizer besides being a great option for breakfast, here are some other recipes that you can try - Moong Dal Bhajiya/Lentil Fritters and, Kobichi Vadi | Steamed Cabbage Cakes. Leftover batter can be used to make small fritters and used in the Dahi Vada recipe.
Top recipe tips 💭
You can also add black peppercorns, coconut, or onions to the batter. Do not make the batter runny. It should be thick and smooth. You can add a tablespoon of rice flour to fix a runny Medu Vadai batter. Depending on the size of the vadas, you can make more or less. If you are unable to shape them as donuts, you can always shape them as small balls (like fritters) and drop them in hot oil. Making Medu Vada requires a bit of practice (similar to Rava Dosa). Do not get dejected in the first attempt. Nowadays you also get Medu Vada Maker which you can use if you want. I have not tried it yet.
FAQs 📖
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Recipe 📖
South Indian Medu Wada | Lentil Fritters
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups urad dal
- 2 tablespoon raw rice
- 7-8 curry leaves
- 5 green chillies
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 teaspoon asafoetida
- Salt
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- Rinse and soak urad dal and rice in water for an hour.
- Drain the water and transfer it to a mixer grinder.
- Add curry leaves, asafoetida, green chillies, ginger, and salt to it.
- Blitz to make a smooth paste. Add just water if needed to help with grinding. The batter should be thick and not runny.
- Transfer to a bowl. Add salt.
- Mix. Heat oil for frying.
- Slit open a ziplock bag. Open it and sprinkle water on the surface. With wet hands, place a small dollop of batter in the center. Flatten it lightly and make a hole in the middle. Chef Tip - Be careful when working with water. You don't need too much. Just moist your hand and smear the ziplock surface with water.
- When the oil is hot, carefully drop the Medu Vadai in hot oil. Follow these steps to make more. Do not crowd the pan. Fry without flipping it for 2-3 minutes on medium flame. It should start turning golden.
- Then carefully flip to the other side and continue to cook till it turns golden at the bottom. There should not be any white spots left. It should turn golden evenly.
- Carefully take them out. Use paper towels to soak the excess oil. Make as many as you need and serve with Coconut Chutney, Sambhar, or Rasam.
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