Ulundu Vadai / Medu Vada - South Indian Recipe with video

                 Medhu vada or ulundhu vadai or urad dal vada is a traditional south Indian food. They are crispy on outside and soft on inside. Ulundu vadai are made from urad dal batter. Green chillies, ginger, curry leaves, pepper and onion are mixed into the batter. Vadai is wheel-shaped with a hole in the middle. Ulundu vadai is bland and so it is usually enjoyed with chutney or sambar

    Ingredients
    Number of servings : 10

              Black Split Urad Dal - 1/2 Cup
              Ginger - 1/2 Inch
              Green Chillies - 2
              Salt to taste
              Water as needed( ~ 2 Tbsp)
              Crushed Pepper - 1 Tsp
              Shallots or Small Onion -  7
              Few Curry Leaves
              Oil for deep frying

    
    Method

• Soak the urad dal for 1 hour in enough water.
• Drain the water and wash the dal and remove the skin.
• Take a mixie or grinder or food processor, transfer urad dal, green chillies and ginger to it. Add a lit bit of water. Grind it until smooth consistency. Make sure don't add too much of water, because vadai will absorbs more oil in that case.
• Once the batter is ready, add chopped onions, curry leaves, salt and crushed pepper. Mix Well with spoon or by hand.
• Heat oil in a shallow pan. Take a zip lock bag or Milk cover or banana leaf or polythene sheet and have a cup of water in bowl on sides.
• Just wet your hands, take a small sized batter and place it in the zip lock bag greased with water. Make a hole in the middle and carefully transfer it to the hot oil. Continue the same process for each vadai.

      Here is the video on how to make vadai..

• Fry the vadai till it turns golden brown color on both sides.
• Serve hot along with sambar and coconut chutney.         

              

     Tips

• If your batter is watery, add a tsp of rice flour to it or refrigerate the batter for 30 mins to 1 hour.
• You can use white or black urad dal to make vadai.
• Don't add too much of water, because vadai absorbs too much of oil.
• You can shape vadai either in Zip lock bag or in palm of your hand
• If you don't get shape, the easy & best way is to drop the batter with a spoon into the oil.

    Health Benefits of Urad dal

• Urad dal provides energy to the body.
• Rich in protein.
• Enhances digestion because of high in fiber content.
• Boost heart health because of high in magnesium level.