Dahi Vada

Debesh Paul
Jun 16, 2021
5 min read

Updated: Jun 17, 2021

Hi guys, Hope you guys are doing well.🙂 Today I am sharing a picture of most famous Indian food 𝗗𝗮𝗵𝗶 𝗩𝗮𝗱𝗮 along with the procedure of making it. • 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐡𝐢 𝐕𝐚𝐝𝐚? Dahi Vada is a popular street food from North India.“Dahi” means yogurt and “Vada” means deep fried fritters or dumplings, and the recipe is about as straightforward as it sounds. Dahi vada are often made for special occasions and festivals, but can also be enjoyed anytime for a party snack or appetizer. The result is an impressive and delicious snack that includes just the right balance of sour, sweet, savory, and spicy flavors in every bite. • 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐡𝐢 𝐕𝐚𝐝𝐚? Just follow the steps I am giving below👇 ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭 : Soak 1 cup heaped Urad Dal/বিউলির ডাল (200 grams husked and split black lentils) overnight or for at least 4.5 to 5 hours. Later drain all the water using a colander or strainer. If you prefer, you can rinse the soaked urad dal. ⏺ If you don't know what's Urad Dal here's is the picture 👇

▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮 : Then add the drained and soaked lentils/dal in your trusted blender or mixer-grinder. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯 : Add in ½ teaspoon chopped green chilies or serrano/thai chillies, 1 teaspoon chopped ginger, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 pinch of asafoetida (hing) and salt as needed. 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲 - Asafoetida/Hing is optional, if you wish you can add a little.I have not used Hing as I said it's optional. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟰 : Blend or grind adding ¼ cup to ½ cup water in parts to a smooth fluffy batter. Depending on the quality, age of lentils and soaking time the water amount can vary from ½ to ¾ cup. Keep in mind that the batter has a thick to medium-thick flowing consistency. Don't make it too sleazy or too thick, It must be kept in medium concentration otherwise, your dahi vada would not be able to take the proper size.So, you have to keep this in mind. 𝗧𝗶𝗽 - To check if the batter has the right consistency, place a few drops of batter in a bowl of water. The batter having the right consistency will float on top of the water surface. If the batter has become thin, it will sink or dissolve in the water. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟱 : Take the ground batter in a bowl with a help of a spatula or spoon.Then briskly and vigorously whip the batter for two to three-four minutes with a spoon, whisk or spatula. Whipping the batter aerates it and makes it more fluffy and light. As a result, you get softer and porous vada. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟲 : Stir in 1 tablespoon raisins (chopped) and 12 to 13 cashews (chopped roughly). These are optional ingredients and you can skip them if you want.I have not used them. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟳 : Heat oil (It should be refined/sunflower/rice brand oil, so you will get a light, soft and crispy vada) as needed for deep frying in a kadai or frying pan.Heat oil on medium heat. The oil should reach a temperature of 180° - 190° Celsius (356° - 384° Fahrenheit). 𝗧𝗶𝗽 - To check without a thermometer, add some droplets of the batter with a spoon. It should sizzle and come up on the surface of oil swiftly and gradually. If the batter droplets stay at the bottom of the pan, the oil is cold. If it comes up very quickly and becomes too browned or burnt, the oil is very hot. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟴 : Once the oil has reached the correct heat or temperature, now you can either drop the batter carefully with your fingers (without touching the hot oil as it will be too hot, you can burn your hand so be careful while doing this) or with a spoon in medium hot oil. Fry the vada in batches until crisp and golden. I prefer to use a spoon. You can moisten the spoon with a bit of water, so that the batter slides easily from it. Make the vada having more or less the same size. If you end up making different sizes, than the smaller sized vada will fry quickly and the larger sized vada will take more time. So do take a note of it and remove the smaller vada when they look golden and crisp all over.So, all sizes should be same. Do not overcrowd the pan or kadai. Overcrowding the pan will lower the oil temperature and as a result the vadas will soak more oil. The vada also expand a bit while frying. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟵 : Let the bottom side become light golden and crisp. Then only turn these or they will break in the oil. Flip again and for a couple of times more while frying. This ensures even cooking and you should see a uniform golden color all over. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟬 : Place the vada on paper towels. This way fry the remaining vada in batches using up the entire batter 𝗧𝗶𝗽 - If you want use half portion of the batter, then refrigerate the batter for a couple of days or freeze it for a month.Don't worry, it will not be ruined. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟭 : Wait for 2 to 3 minutes and while they are still hot, add the vada in water (at room temperature) and let them soak for 13-15 minutes. The vada will release some of the oil and absorb water increasing a bit in size with a color change. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟮 : Press each soaked vada between your palms to remove water. Gently press or else you might break them. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟯 : Press all the soaked vada this way and keep them aside in a plate or you can put them in the bowl or tray that you will be serving your dahi vada. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟰 : Beat 2.5 - 3 cups chilled curd (yogurt) until smooth. Check the taste of the curd before you assemble.The curd should not taste sour, bitter or acidic. It should be fresh with a pleasant sweet-sour taste.I suggest you all to use homemade curd. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟱 : Keep some tamarind chutney ready.You will get the tamarind chutney in shops or supermarket.You can prepare the chutney in home, I will share the procedure another day.But I have used readymade chutney here. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟲 : In a large serving bowl or a tray arrange the vada which you had set aside after squeezing the water.Pour the beaten curd evenly all over the vada covering them completely.Pour the sweet tamarind chutney as you like on it. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟳 : Sprinkle dahi vada with a few pinches of red chili powder or cayenne, roasted cumin powder, ¼ cup pomegranate arils, chaat masala and/or black salt.These are optional, if you wish you can use. ▪️𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭𝟴 : You can refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving. It tastes great to eat in chilled. Here I'm sharing how it looks after serving👇

Yes, your 𝗗𝗮𝗵𝗶 𝗩𝗮𝗱𝗮 is ready!!!! Just follow this small 18 steps I have given and I am sure you will fall in love with this dish. 🛑 Tag me in social media when you share it.I would love to see them 😍. ⏺ If you want to connect with me, here I am sharing my social media handle links👇👇👇