Dahi Vada
December 27th, 2007 filed under ChaatDahi Vadas are lentil dumplings topped with a spicy savory yogurt and tamarind chutney. These are great as a side dish for a formal dinner or served as a chaat. Dahi vadad are made using wash urad dal or moong dal or with a combination of both dals using different proportions of dal.
Makes about 30.
Ingredients to Make the Vadas:
- 3/4 cup washed Moong dal
- 1/4 cup washed Urad dal
- Oil to fry
Ingredients for Garnish:
- 1 1/2 cup yogurt
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon red chilly powder
- 1/2 teaspoon roasted cumin seed powder
- 3 tablespoons tamarind chutney
Method
To make the Vadas:
Mix both dals and wash several times in water until the water appears clear. Soak the dal in 4 cups of water for at least four hours. Drain the water and blend the dal using a blender. Use just enough water as needed to blend until very fine.
Whip the dal batter using a spoon in a circular motion for about two to three minutes. To check if the batter is ready, put a little drop of the batter in a glass of water. If the batter comes up, it is ready. Whip the batter a little more if the batter does not come up.
To fry the vadas, use a flat frying pan. Do not put more than 1/2 inch of oil in the frying pan. Place the heat on medium high. Place about 1 tablespoon of batter into the oil. Continue to place the tablespoons of batter in the pan. The vadas will become about double in size so do not over fill the pan. Fry until golden-brown all around. After you have made all of the vadas, place the vadas in luke warm water and soak for about 20 minutes. Drain the water out making sure to squeeze out all the excess water. Be careful not to break the vadas.
To make Yogurt topping and Garnish:
Take two cups of yogurt and mix until very smooth. Use some milk as needed to make the consistency similar to pancake batter or lassi. Add about 1 teaspoon of salt or as needed.
Soak all the vadas in the yogurt batter for at least twenty minutes, giving the vadas time to absorb the yogurt.
Slowly pick up each vada and transfer to a serving dish, pouring a few spoons of extra yogurt all over the vadas.
Just before serving, sprinkle some salt as needed, ground roasted cumin seeds, red chilly powder and finish off with a drizzle of tamarind chutney.
Variations
As an alternative, you can add chopped green chilies and crushed coriander seeds to the dal batter, just before you start frying the vadas. Instead of serving with tamarind chutney, you can add some chopped cilantro over the dahi vadas. You can also make the vadas very small and serve as a Raita dish. If you are vegan, you can also soak the vadas in tamarind chutney instead of yogurt and sprinkle some chopped cilantro.
Suggestions
You can also make the dahi vadas in advance and freeze them before soaking in the water. When ready to use, take as many as needed out and soak in hot water for a few minutes. Next, change the water to room temperature and soak for 20 minutes. You can prepare and serve them the usual way.
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August 24th, 2008 at 5:24 am
aww jaya thanks a ton for the quick reply… i think m gonna try this tmrw itself.. will definitely let u know how they were… [:)]
August 23rd, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Hi Ayesha,
Good question.
I DO add salt and red chili powder to my vada batter.
August 23rd, 2008 at 12:31 pm
thanks jaya for ur reply…
another question that crossed my mind… no salt in the vada batter???
August 23rd, 2008 at 5:50 am
Hi Ayesha,
You can use moong and urad dal as shown in the recipe -or- change the dal proportions to your liking. The urad dal alone is the traditional flavor, but some people find it harder on the tummy so the moong dal addition helps with that. Happy Cooking.
August 22nd, 2008 at 9:09 pm
dear manjula aunty
i am new here bt i just wanna congratulate u on the wonderful work ur doin. ur recipes look awesome and simple. m gonna try these dahi baday soon…
just a query here… what difference will it make if i change the proportions of the dals or if i wanna make it with just urad dal.. as i hav seen ppl doin that…
thanks n regards
ayesha sajid.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Dear Manjula Aunty,
I finally made time to make dahi vadas and they turn out very well. Today is Sunday so I turned lunch into “chaat” with dahi vadas, chhole, and poori.
It was yummy. Wish I could have shared it with you.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Hi priti,
In dahi vada the proportion of dals can be different, and that will work fine.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
Namaste anuty, what if I dont have a measuring cup. If I have small bowl. I took 1/4 utad dal and two small bowls ( katori) of moong dal. Will my bater still come out good. Plz reply.
regards
Priti
July 28th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
auntyji…yummy yummyy…
i have gained more that 12 pounds!!!! evrytym u post a new recipie n i try n eat…thn it becomes regular in our diner….mera kya hoga…m becoming fat!!!!!
thnks 4 the recipie….
July 7th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
Thank You So Much Aunty,for replying my querry.I tried the dahi vadas as mentioned in the recipe,and they turned out to be really really great.All my inlaws were impressed.Thank You So Much.
July 7th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Dear Aunty,
I tried the vadas and they were marvellous.
Thanks a million.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:35 am
gr8 method for nice soft vadas,,good
June 13th, 2008 at 8:37 pm
Hi Maher, adding baking soda will make too soft and break. while frying vadas will soak eoo much oil.
June 13th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Hello Manjula Aunty,
Thanks for posting such tasty recipes for learners like me.I would like to know that dont we have to add soda to the vadas batter in order to make them soft.Will they turn out to be more soft if we add or will it spoil them.
June 9th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
Hi manjula,
I like ur recipes a lot, especially recipes of samosas and rasgulla. I am just wondering if you have a recipe of chaat masala?
Thanks a lot
May 21st, 2008 at 6:29 pm
HI MANJULA AUNTY, YOUR R WONDERFUL.U GIVE US VERY NICE AND EASY RECIPE .TODAY I MAKE DAHI VADS AND IT’S COME VERY NICE AND TEASTY .THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR VERY EASY RECIPE.
NASRIN
May 16th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
hello manjula aunty, i see your recipe and looks good .but u not put salt in batter .u forget or we not need add salt ? why?
May 12th, 2008 at 9:52 am
Hello Preeti, yes you can add cashwe , raisins, green chili to dahi vada it will taste great.
About Samosa and Kachori microwave is bad idea. you can freeze then half cook, difreset them and refry or heat in oven ot toaster oven.
May 11th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
Hello Manjula aunty,
I keep on watching your recipes …. i want to ask you that can i add some cashwe nuts and raisins in vadas ? Also want to ask you one thing about kachoris and samosas ….
i make more kachoris and samosas at a time and i freeze them . After making if i eat immidietely those are very tasty but once i freeze and later when i reheat in microwave those kachoris and samosas leave too much oil and become so oily . Would you suggest me how i can solve this thing . Should i put less oil while kneading dough ?
April 14th, 2008 at 9:13 am
Hello Kirti, you can use any proportion of urad and moong dal will work fine but moong dal is easy to digest. But more urad dal gives creamy texture.
April 13th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
hello manjula aunty,
i wanted to know if we can also make dahi wadas by using 3/4th cup urad dal and 1/4th cup of muug dal. what would be the difference? which ones would be lighter to digest?
April 9th, 2008 at 10:11 am
your style of making dahi wada is so simple and delicious that i can’t express
in words. i also made jalebis with your style,it was just marvelous.my husband and both kids thanks me for both items…..but these thanks i am transferring to u
only THANK YOU AUNTY
April 9th, 2008 at 9:40 am
Manjulaji:
I found your recipe videos while searching for Dahi vada. I love your presentation and want to try the recipes.
thank you
geena
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:01 pm
You are simply genius.I love all your recipes.
March 26th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Thankyou so much for this easy recipe alongwith the detailed demonstration. I tried out these dahi vadas today for dinner and followed your method exactly And they really came out quite well.Me and my husband relished them with the tamarind chutney. I will surely try to make them again!