Carrot Masala Vada

Carrot Masala Vada

Among the myriad varieties of vadas that South Indian cuisine boasts of, Masala Vada, is a visually pleasing and palate comforting item that beautifies the festive platter. To give a twist to the regular Masala Vada, I added carrot for that extra oomph and it did not fail to please our taste buds.

Carrot Masala Recipe
Prep & Cooking: 30 mts, soaking: 2 hrs
Makes approx 30 vadas/fritters
Cuisine: Andhra

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chana dal, soak in water 2 hrs, drain
• 1/2 cup grated carrot
• 1 large finely chopped onion
• 3-4 green chillis finely chopped
• 2″ ginger finely minced
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
• 1 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
• 8-10 curry leaves, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp cumin pwd
• pinch of garam masala pwd
• salt to taste
• oil for deep frying

Method:

1 Grind the soaked and drained chana dal (leave aside a fistful of soaked dal), ginger, garlic and green chillis to a coarse paste. Add the remaining chana dal, chopped onions, grated carrot, mint leaves, curry leaves coriander leaves, cumin pwd, garam masala pwd and salt and mix well.
2 Take some of this mixture to form a lemon sized ball. Flatten it on your palm to make a patti shape. Prepare patties with the rest of the mixture.
3 Heat oil for deep frying in a heavy bottomed vessel. Once its hot, reduce flame to medium and place these patties in the oil and fry them to a golden brown color.
4 Serve hot with tomato sauce or any chutney of your choice.