What is it about rains that gets people in such a good mood, I often wonder. Is it the romanticism that the rain brings with it? The gentle pitter-patter of raindrops on your front yard or on your roof? The option of cuddling under your favourite blanket, with your windows wide open, aimlessly scrolling through your phone? Or my personal favourite - the smell of rain? That glorious petrichor that smells like earth mixed with water, triggers memories of sipping on a hot cup of chai, way back when I was a teenager, at Appuppan's home, watching Kerala's monsoons unravel in all its glory. Nine times out of ten, the evening cuppa would be accompanied by a plate of crispy hot parippu vadas or Kerala's famous pazhampori (which I personally am not a huge fan of). Vadas are also a regular feature in the tea shops there, I am told, and one can rarely go wrong with the chaaya and parippu vada combination.
It is the monsoon season once again and having moved to Bangalore earlier this year, I can actually witness monsoons in June-July, hallelujah. As a gentle downpour drenched the city this afternoon, it seemed like a good time as any to dish out this easy-to-make parippu vada recipe. Brew a perfect cup of chai and I promise you, your Friday evening is sorted.
Parippu Vada or Masala Vada
Flavours: mildly spicy
Texture: crunchy, crispy
Ingredients:
Toor daal (soaked for minimum 2 hours): 1 cup
Onions: 1 or 2 medium-sized, finely diced
Green chilli: 2, finely chopped
Curry leaves: a few, chopped or roughly torn
Asafoetida: 1 tsp
Chilli powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
Vegetable/sunflower for frying (use any oil)
Salt to taste
Method:
Wash and soak the toor daal (some recipes suggest using chana daal, but I personally prefer toor) for at least two hours. Drain out the water and grind in your mixer until it is a coarse paste.
Mix in the rest of the ingredients: onion, chilli, curry leaves and the masalas plus salt - until it all combines well.
Heat oil in a deep-bottomed dish or kadai.
Roll your vada mix into bite-sized balls between your palms. Make sure your palms are damp (not soaking wet) when you do this so your dough doesn't stick to your hands. Flatten out the dough balls slightly before dropping it in the hot oil.
RESIST the urge to turn it over immediately. The vadas will start getting brown on the bottom (3-4 mins depending on how hot your oil is) and ONLY then, turn it over. Also, remember not to overcrowd your kadai with too many vadas, or else they will all stick together.
Once it has cooked on each side for about 3-4 minutes, take it out and dry on paper towels.
You can serve these with any kind of chutney, but I personally prefer to have it as is, with my chai, or with a bit of tomato ketchup (ketchup haters, please don't come at me).
Tip: Add some rice flour/corn flour (1/2 tsps) to the vada mix to get crispier vadas. Also, they will absorb less oil that way.
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