Ulundu Wade

Ulundu (Ulundu ata)- 1 cup
Big Onion finely chopped-1 medium size
Green Chilli finely chopped-1 medium size
Curry leaves finely chopped-2 table spoons
Baking soda - 2 pinches
Salt to taste
Oil as required for frying


Soak Ulundu in water for 5 hours.Grind the soaked urad dhal into a fine paste i.e. when you take the batter in your fingers you should not feel the grains (Add water to the batter little by little so that the batter doesn’t go watery). The batter should be thick. It should not flow freely from the spoon when you pour it down.

Mix Onion, Green Chilli, Curry leaves and Salt together. Add the above mixture to the batter and mix well. Add baking soda to the batter and mix well.

Heat oil.

Dip your hands in water.Take the batter of the size of a small ball in your palm and pat it to form a circle.Dip your index finger in water and make a hole in the patted batter in the center.

Fry the patted batter in oil till golden brown on both sides.

Soft and puffy Vadas are tastes good with coconut sambol.


Tips:

To get soft, puffy Vadas the batter should be very fine without grains.

Add baking soda just before cooking. Do not mix baking soda with the batter and leave it for a long time before cooking.

While taking the batter in hand dip your palm in water so that after patting the batter, you can drop it in the oil. If the batter is watery it will not freely drop into the oil.

To check if the Vada is cooked fully wash the tip of a knife, pierce the vada and take it out. If no batter sticks on to the knife Vada is cooked or else more cooking is needed.