Parippu Vada/ Fried Lentil Cakes

Recipe No: 93

Parippu Vada is one of the most popular tea time snacks in Kerala and is available in most of the road side Teashops. Well this happened to be one of the favorite Tea snack at my house too. My mother used to make this with Thoor Dal (Sambar Parippu), Channa Dal (Kadala (Chick Pea) Parippu) and even half of both and I should say every one of them tastes awesome. Whatever kind of Lentil you use this recipe remains the same. And don’t forget the popular combination of Parippu Vada and Pazham (Banana).

Ingredients                                 Makes 12

• Split Channa Dal/ Kadala Parippu…….1 Cup (Wash and soak in water for 4 Hours)
• Sliced Shallots………………………………..1/2 Cup
• Ginger Chopped……………………………..2 Tablespoons
• Green Chilly Chopped…………………...3 Tablespoons (Adjust according to your heat tolerance)
• Salt…………………………………………..…..1 Teaspoon (adjust to your taste)
• Curry Leaves………………………………….1 Sprig (Tear into small pieces)
• Oil for deep frying

Method of Preparation

1. Drain the Dal/ Lentil from the soaking water and transfer into a food processor or a dry grinder of your regular Mixer Grinder. Don’t use any more water and don’t overfill. If there is too much Dal, grind it in batches.
2. Grind it into a course consistency. There will be some lentils still lying whole which are good in this. When done you should be able to make it into balls without falling apart.
3. Grind Shallots, Ginger and Green Chilly for 2 seconds or a single pulse if you are using a food processor. This will make them small so that it will not fall out while making the Vada.
4. Mix together the Lentils, Shallots mixture, Salt and Curry Leaves and mix really well.

5. Divide the Lentil mixture into 12 equal parts, each with the size of a Golf Ball.
6. Press each portion between your palms and drop it into really hot Oil. Once dropped , lower the temperature to medium high and let it fry till they are light brown in color. Don’t forget to turn them over in between.
7. Crank up the heat in the last part of the frying to avoid Vadas from absorbing too much of Oil.
8. Drain the excess oil by putting them on paper towels and serve hot with Banana and a cup of Tea.

Notes:

• Drain Dal only when you are ready to grind because you need the moisture that is till on the Dal. Be sure to drain the rest of the water.
• Mix in the Salt and the ground Shallot mixture only in the last moment. Otherwise Salt will drain the water out of the other ingredients, making it watery.
• Don’t fry it in high heat as it will crisp up the outside without cooking the inside. So keep the high heat while dropping the Vadas. But once dropped, reduce the temperature a bit; let it cook and crank the heat back up just before taking it out of the Oil.
• The thickness of the Vada depends on your liking. If you want a real crispy one flatten it as much as possible. On the other hand if you want a thick center, don’t flatten it too much. But keep in mind that the center of the Vada has a tendency to puff up a bit while cooking.

 



Make it , enjoy the deliciousness and 
serve it to your family with love…