My work often takes me to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent which is famous for its vegetarian Cuisine. I tasted this delicious dish during one of my trips and I have been in love with it ever since. The best part of the curry is that it can be served with idli, medu vadai, idiyappam, dosa or even rice.
Ingredients
- Serves 4
- For the Vada
- 1 Cup Chana Dal
- 1-inch Ginger (roughly chopped)
- 4 Red Chilli
- 1/2 Tsp Fennel Seeds
- Salt to Taste
- Oil (for deep frying)
- Water
- For the Coconut Cashew Paste
- 4 Tbsp Grated Coconut
- 10 Cashew Nuts
- Water
- For the Vada Curry
- 2 Tbsp Oil
- Whole Spices (1-inch Cinnamon, 3 Cloves, 2 Cardamom, 1 Bay Leaf, 1 Star Anise, 1 Tbsp Fennel Seeds and 1 Stone Flower)
- 3 Medium Onions (finely chopped)
- 2 Green Chili (chopped)
- Curry Leaves
- 1 Tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
- 2 Medium Tomato (chopped)
- Salt to Taste
- 1/2 Tsp Turmeric Powder
- 2 Tsp Red Chili Powder
- 2 Tsp Coriander Powder
- 1/2 Garam Masala Powder
- 2 Cups Water
- Coriander Leaves
- For the Set Dosai
- 3 Cups Parimal Rice
- 1 Cup Split Urad Dal (White)
- Water as Required
- Salt to Taste
- Turmeric Powder
- Ghee
Preparation
Prep: 30 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes
- • For the Vada, soak the chana dal for 6 to 8 hrs. Strain the water and add the dal to a mixer jar. Add fennel seeds, red chillies, ginger and salt. Grind it into a coarse batter.
- Heat some oil for deep frying and slowly drop the vada mixture into the hot oil and deep fry them.
- Fry the vadas till they are slightly golden brown (you need not fry them till they turn deep brown). Break the vadas into small pieces and keep it aside.
- For coconut cashew paste, in a mixer jar, add coconut, cashews and grind it to a fine paste by adding some water.
- For the curry, heat some oil in a kadai, add cinnamon, fennel seeds, bay leaf, star anise, stone flower, curry leaves, onions, green chillies and saute till they are soft.
- Next, add ginger-garlic paste and saute along. Add tomatoes and saute, add turmeric powder, coriander powder, garam masala, red chilli powder and salt. Saute everything well, add water and bring it to a boil.
- Then add the coconut-cashew paste and mix well. Add the vada pieces and close and cook for 10 minutes. Finally, garnish it with coriander leaves and serve hot.
- For the set dosa, soak rice and dal in separate bowls overnight. In the morning, strain excess water and using a blender grind the dal to a fine paste. Use minimal water. Follow the same procedure for rice. Mix the batter properly and keep it aside for fermentation.
- Take a portion of the batter in a separate bowl, add salt and turmeric powder. Mix some water if the batter is too thick.
- Heat a non-stick dosa tawa, pour a portion of the batter using a ladle. Using a flat base bowl spread the batter on the tawa to the thickness of 1 mm. Pour some ghee on the dosa and flip it to cook evenly. Serve hot!
