Vadai is a favorite Indian snack. Mom used to make these and my brothers and I really enjoyed them. They are crispy and crunchy on the outside and soft and moist on the inside. They are especially delicious, straight out of the pan. When cooled, it is best eaten with curry.
I made some sweet and frothy tea to go with these savory snacks. It is a strong black tea sweetened with condensed milk. Teh Tarik literally means “pulled tea” and is prepared by out stretched hands pouring the tea from one mug to the other. This is action causes the tea to be frothy and is quite a sight to behold.
Vadai
2 cups chana dal, wash and soak overnight
1 onion, chopped
1 jalapeno peppers, finely sliced
1 red anaheim peppers, finely sliced
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp toasted cumin seeds
1 tsp salt
oil for deep frying
3 tbsp besan or gram flour (**if necessary)
Wash and rinse chana dal. Soak overnight. Drain and put a little at a time into a food processor. Grind coarsely. Add all other ingredients, except for besan. Mix well.
Heat oil in a deep fry pan. Shape dough into patties about 2½ inches in diameter with oiled hands. Drop gently into oil and deep fry until golden brown. Remove, drain on paper towels.
**If dal mixture can be shaped into patties, besan may not be required. When dal is ground more coarsely, besan will be needed to bind dal mixture. The 3 tablespoons of besan should be mixed with 3 tablespoons of water and added to the dal mixture to help it bind.
Note: The ones on the left are more finely ground while the ones on the right are more coarse.
Serve warm…..
…..with teh tarik.
For the teh tarik, I use Lipton tea which is orange pekoe and pekoe tea, sweetened with condensed milk. You must be wondering if I actually pulled the tea. I was too afraid to even try for you know where the tea will end up…..hahaha! Instead I chose the easy way out and used an immersion blender. A milkshake mixer will also do the job. Now, it’s your turn. Perhaps you can trying pulling it, preferably outside wearing a rain jacket…..hahaha!
A delicious combination…..yum!
The other snacks that brought back fond childhood memories are Coconut Candy and Chinese Savory Pancakes. What are some of your favorite childhood snacks? Please share. I would love to hear from you.
Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day!
FoodLovers says
March 22, 2010 at 12:38 amlooks gorgeous
Silence Sings says
March 22, 2010 at 3:05 amHi Biren, Such a tempting and mouth watering snacks…..the snap are too good…
denise@ quickies on the dinner table says
March 22, 2010 at 3:52 amOMG Biren! Which part of Malaysia are you from!?! This is fabulous girl! FABULOUS!! You're doing all sorts of things to my stomach! 😀 It's been ages since I had one of these – I am going to try these very, very soon. One question – can I use drained, canned chick peas? I'm just not a soak em overnight kinda girl LOL
Tina says
March 22, 2010 at 6:08 amSooooo crispy and delicious…
tigerfish says
March 22, 2010 at 8:45 am5pm…is it too late for tea now? I think I will just snack on some of your vadai and sip the teh tarik first and talk about dinner later. ;p
MaryMoh says
March 22, 2010 at 9:34 amGreat for tea time. I just had teh tarik at the Malaysian Hall yesterday….so happy!
Biren says
March 22, 2010 at 1:18 pmFoodLovers – Thanks for stopping by!
Silence Sings – Thanks!
denise@quickies on the dinner table – LOL! You are not giving up, are you? Thanks for the compliments. I will be making them again soon as I have not had these for ages and it was good. I don't think the canned chick peas are the same thing. Canned chick peas are garbanzo beans and this is chana dal which is lentils. Try soaking for 3 to 4 hours just so it softens a little 🙂
tigerfish – No, you are not too late for tea. Please help yourself 🙂
MaryMoh – Oh….lucky you! You get to enjoy all kinds of delicious foods.
Sarah Naveen says
March 22, 2010 at 2:17 pmexcellent combo…vadai looks so crispy and yummy!!
5 Star Foodie says
March 22, 2010 at 2:35 pmThese look like such scrumptious and flavorful savory bites, yum!
Gulmohar says
March 22, 2010 at 4:08 pmMy fav vadas..perfect evening snack…
Natashya KitchenPuppies says
March 22, 2010 at 6:47 pmDelicious! My daughter would love these.
Biren says
March 23, 2010 at 12:54 pmSarah Naveen – They are delicious and crispy fresh out of the pan 🙂
5 Star Foodie – Thanks. I really enjoyed them 🙂
Gulmohar – I like them too and they make a wonderful snack!
Cinnamon-Girl says
March 24, 2010 at 9:03 pmThese look totally delicious! So golden and crispy on the outside. I love the tea! Sounds like a real treat with condensed milk.
Biren says
March 26, 2010 at 2:24 amNatashya KitchenPuppies – We enjoyed it and I am thinking of making more soon.
Cinnamon-Girl – They are delicious straight out of the pan….very crispy. If you have a sweet tooth, the tea is for you 🙂
Victoria K. says
June 6, 2010 at 6:04 pmI LOVE lentils! These fritters look so delicious! That sweet tea also looks amazing, what a great compliment to the salty, crispy, soft fritters. I would love to try this out!