Dahi vada is a very popular snack/chat item of North India. It can be served as a starter, appetizer or as a side.The wonderful rich and creamy taste of dahi vada make it on the top list of Indian chat.it is also a delicious street food of northern india.
South India's famous Thayir Vadai is very close to dahi vada - just the shape and the spices used to garnish are different, and usually thayir vadai doesn't have chutneys drizzled over it.
What is Dahi Vada
Dahi vadas are round fritters made with husked white lentil/urad daal. Daal is soaked and ground into soft paste and then whisked well to make it fluffy. Small nuggets from the whisked daal are drooped in hot oil either with wet spoon or using your fingers. They are deep fried to a golden colour and then soaked in salted water.
When they are soaked well then drizzled with yogurt, tangy sauces, chili powder and roasted cumin powder.
Dahi vada are made with urad daal ,or you can also mix little yellow moong daal in it, it depends on personal preference ,both taste good.
Tips to Make Soft Porous Dahi Vadas
To make soft dahi vadas you have to take care of few things-
- first is to use good quality Urad daal,very old stock may not give best results.
- Soak the daal for minimum 6 hours or preferably overnight.
- Grind the soaked daal to make a smooth batter,you have to add just enough water while grinding as very little water won't make it soft and fluffy and adding too much water make it watery and then it become difficult to shape and and it will also absorb a lot of oil.
- After grinding the daal, it should be whisked very well with a spoon, fork or with a wire whisk to make it fluffy ,the whisked daal will change its colour from cream to white and look fluffy when done. You can check if it is done or not by adding a drop of batter in a bowl filled with water, if the drop floats on top then its done and if it sink in then you need to whisk it more.
- If you have whisked the daal well then there will be no need to add soda bi carb in it ,I have never used soda and get super soft vadas every time.
- At this stage you can add few chopped cashews ,raisins, chopped ginger, chopped green chilies in it ,but this is optional you can add just few things or make them plain if you wish.
- After you have whisked the batter well then deep fry the dahi vadas on medium heat ,if you fry on high heat then they will cook from the outside but may remain raw from the inside ,and if you fry them on low heat then the dahi vadas will absorb lots of oil.
- You can make dahivada's small or big any size of your choice.
- After frying dahi vadas ,they should be soaked in water (room temperature) and do add a tsp of 1 salt in the water .If you feel that the vadas are not soft enough then soak them in lukewarm water
Can we Freeze Dahivada's and use later
You can definitely freeze fried Dahi vada's and use them later. Fried dahi vada's and then let them cool down completely and then store in a zip lock bag and keep in your freezer . they stay fresh for at least 2 months. When you want to use them then just take out from the freezer and let them defrost and come to room temperature . Then add salt in medium hot water and soak thee vada's for few hours or till they become soft.
How to assemble the vadas
- After about an hour the vadas will become soft then gently squeeze the vadas and arrange on the serving plate
- Drizzle with chilled sweet yogurt, Date and tamarind chutney, Green chutney, sprinkle black salt, red chili powder, roasted cumin powder and some chopped fresh coriander.
- Refrigerate for an hour and then serve chilled dahi vadas.
If you are looking for some snack and sweet recipes to try on then check-
Soak the white lentil and yellow lentil for around 6-8 hours or preferably overnight
Ground to a fine paste and whisk the ground lentil paste well to make it fluffy
To check if its fluffy enough - drop a small ball of batter in a cup of water,if it floats over it ,then it's
done ,but if it sinks in the bottom then you need to whisk the paste some more.
Add chopped ginger, green chilies, crushed pepper corns, cumin seeds, cashew pieces, raisins and fresh coriander and mix well
Deep fry in enough oil on medium heat from both sides till golden in colour.
When done remove from the pan and drain on paper towel
Soak the vadas in water with some salt added.
Soak for around 2 hours or till they swell up and become soft. Now whisk the yogurt and add water if required.Dip the squeezed dahi vada's in the yogurt or arrange the vada's in the serving dish and pour the yogurt over the vada's
Sprinkle roasted cumin powder,chili powder and black salt and some tamarind chutney and mint chutney.
Dahi Vada / Dahi Bhalla / Lentil Dumplings in Yoghurt
Dahi vada -Fluffy lentil dumplings smothered in creamy yogurt and drizzled with spicy chutneys a North Indian snack/street food.
