Parippu Vada (Lentil/Dal Fritters)
Parripu vada, also known as Dal Vada or Lentil fritters, is a traditional evening snack in Kerala made from Toor dal. For a Keralite, the immediate association with 'kattan chaaya' (black tea) and 'parippu vada' often brings to mind thoughts of communism.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Chana dal (split bengal gram/kadala parippu)
- 1 big Onion (finely chopped)
- 2-3 Green chilli (finely chopped)
- 1-2 tsp Ginger (finely chopped)
- 1/4 tsp Fennel seeds (optional, refer notes)
- 3-4 stems Curry leaves (finely chopped)
- 1/8 tsp Kayam (asafoetida)
- Salt
- Oil
Instructions
- Soak chana dal in water for 2 hours. Drain the water completely. Make sure that the water is dried well, pat dry the dal with a clean kitchen towel.
- Crush the soaked and drained dal, just run it in mixie for a few seconds. Make sure you don't grind it to a smooth paste. Add all ingredients except oil to the crushed dal and gently mix it together. Make small balls with the dal mix (gooseberry size).
- Heat oil for deep frying pan on high flame. When oil is really hot, reduce the flame to low-medium and add the vada. Before adding to the oil, just flatten each ball in your palm. Wet your hands before flattening the dough. It is better to flatten the dough just before adding to the oil, otherwise it may break.
- Fry till the vadas (fritters) become golden brown or if you like it extra crispy, fry till you get a darker shade of brown. Drain excess oil on a tissue paper. Serve hot.
- You will get around 20-25 parippu vadas of small-medium size, with the above qty.
Notes
- It is better to make small size vada, so that it gets cooked well. If you want the authentic taste, use coconut oil. It is important that the water is drained well, otherwise the batter may become runny, and you will not be able to shape it well. But if your batter turns out to be runny, don’t worry, just drop the batter into the oil using a spoon and fry in the same method. We added fennel seeds to half the qty, as an experiment. It gives a different taste.
- It’s optional to add fennel seeds, maybe you can also try adding it to a small qty and see whether you like it. If you are using, add it along with the onions and stuff. If you want the vadas to be really crispy, fry it till it becomes a bit darker shade of brown. In some places, they use peas dal for making this vada. So, if you don’t get hold of chana dal, you can try it with peas dal.
- You can also make this in advance, if you want to make it in bulk. Cook the dal and crush it and keep. Chop the veggies. Refrigerate. Don’t mix it together, since the water from onion can make the batter soggy. Mix everything together just before frying.
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