Vada Curry Recipe – Saidapetta Vada Curry – How to make Vada Curry – Tamil Nadu Vada Curry Recipe – Madras Mari Hotel Vada Curry – Chennai Special Vada Curry – Street Style Vada Curry – வடகறி செய்முறை – வடகறி செய்வது எப்படி – இட்லி தோசைக்கு அட்டகாசமான கையேந்திபவன் வடகறி #vadacurry #saidapettavadacurry #வடகறி
Vada Curry is a lentil curry dish from Tamil Nadu, often served as a side for Idli Dosa. We usually make it for breakfast… best with soft idlis and kal dosais. There are few different ways in which we do this dish, sometimes we kind of fry the vadai..before making the gravy. The other way is a healthy way where we steam the vadai and add it to the gravy… with or without garam masala… my MIL adds tons of mint leaves when making it… guess that’s how they make it at Pondy! Well, Saidapetta, Chennai is known for this dish.. especially Mari Hotel is very famous for its vada curry.
I tried my best to match that style and also have shared other variation and tips to make it more tasty.
Try some of similar lentil based gravies and curries
Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu
Pakoda Kurma – Chettinad Pakoda Kuzhambu
Masala Vadai Kuzhambu – How to make Vadai Kuzhambu
Vada Curry
Ingredients
To make Vada / Pakoda
- 1 cup Bengal Gram / Kadala paruppu / Chana dal soak for 3 hours
- 1/2 tap Cumin seeds
- 1 tsp Fennel seeds
- 2 small Green chilli
- 1/4 cup Onion finely minced, preferably chinna vengayam
- 1 tbsp Ginger crushed
- 1 tbsp Garlic crushed
- 1 tsp Salt
- 5 each Curry leaves chopped
- 2 cup Oil for deep frying
To Temper
- - 1/4 cup Oil
- - 1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
- - 1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
- - 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
- - 4 leaves Curry leaves
- - 3 each Bay leaf
- - 3 small Cinnamon sticks
- - 6 Cloves
To Saute
- 1 cup Onion
- 1 cup Tomato
- 2 small Green Chili
- 1 tbsp Ginger crushed
- 1 tbsp Garlic crushed
- 1/4 cup Mint leaves
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp Coriander powder
- 1 tsp Red Chili powder
- 1.5 tsp Salt
- 2 cups Water or Light Coconut Milk **** Read notes
- 5 each Curry leaves
- 1/4 cup Coriander leaves for garnish
Instructions
To make Vadai / Pakora
- Wash and soak Bengal gram for at least 3 hours.
- Rinse and drain off all the water completely using a colander and transfer to a blender / mixie.
- Pulse along with green chili, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and salt to a coarse paste. Do not make a fine paste, just choose pulse mode in your blender to make a slightly coarse texture paste.
- Now mix finely minced onion, crushed ginger, garlic and chopped curry leaves. Mix to combine.
- Now choose to either steam the vadai or deep fry.
- To steam - Pinch a little of the mixture to shape into small pakora or shape them into vadai and place them in Idli moulds and steam for 10 minutes. Once done remove, gently crumble and set aside.
- To deep fry - Heat oil in a kadai, and pinch in little of the dough (like small pakodas) fry them over medium flame. We need fry them just enough to firm up the outer layer to a light golden color. Do not fry too long, pakoras have to be slightly crisp with light golden shade and soft interior.
- Finish all the mixture, fry the pakoras ands set aside.
To make gravy
- Heat oil in a pan, splutter mustard, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, curry leaves along with bay leaf, cloves and cinnamon.
- Saute onions and green chillies until lightly golden.
- Then add crushed ginger, garlic and fry along with onions for few minutes.
- Add in tomatoes and let it cook till it becomes mushy.
- Add few fresh mint leaves at this stage. This is is optional... but do to make it much more flavorful.
- Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt. Saute well till the raw smell settles or until the oil separates.
- Add little water at this stage and bring it to a boil. Alternatively you may replace water with light coconut milk for added flavor.
- When the gravy starts to boil, add the steamed crumbled vadas or fried pakoras. Mix well and let it simmer until the vada absorbs the liquid from the gravy or until it thickens to the desired consistency. Switch off!
- Garnish with curry and coriander leaves.
- Serve hot with Idli or dosai.
Notes
- Vadas can be prepared in 3 different ways. Slightly deep fried or Shallow fried with little oil or Steamed.
- Left over masala vadai can also be scrambled to make this curry in hurry.
- Adding mint leaves gives super taste try it!
- You may use either green or red chilli while grinding.. gives a different flavor.
- You can replace water with light coconut milk or thick coconut paste for extra flavour. Coconut powder can also be used to flavor.
- Normal Chennai Style Vada curry includes just a little of the coconut milk or paste. Most street style vada curry does not include coconut milk nor coconut.
- Adding too much coconut milk will bring in a kurma texture to the gravy.
- Another way to bring in coconut flavor is to temper everything in coconut oil.
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