Vada curry recipe, Steamed vada curry

Vada curry recipe - steamed version with full video and step by step detailed pictures. Save some extra calories with the steamed version of vada curry, a popular street food in Saidapet, Madras. There is another version, please scroll down to see the recipe.

About

As I posted last in the breakfast menu11, here I am  with the vada curry recipe. This is perfect for dosa for me, loved it a lot with soft spongy dosa.

Some suggest this for appam, poori or chapati too. I tried with chapati, it was good. Yet to try with poori and appam.

I can eat vada curry as such even though its a side dish. It gives good much volume, so it's perfect when you have get-togethers  or have guest at home.

You follow the same recipe and make with leftover masala vadais too. Again thanks to Vilasini & Viji for the recipes.

I have tasted vada curry only in Saravana bhavan HSB once. Loved it a lot and wanted to recreate at home.

Though stayed in Chennai for an year that too in Saidapet, but never knew vada curry was famous in that area.

During that time, I was a homey-bird, never had chance to go out and eat. So I hope I could once get to taste.

After seeing some YouTube food videos, I saw it to be super masala filled side dish. I think it satisfies people from all groups with such a spicy masala base.

I made it mild spiced and now have updated video to it with slight modifications as I learnt. Let's make some vada curry now.

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4.8 from 5 votes

Steamed vada curry recipe

Vada curry recipe - steamed version with full video and step by step detailed pictures. Save some extra calories with the steamed version of vada curry, a popular street food in Saidapet, Madras.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian, South Indian

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Soaking time 3 hours

Servings 4

1x2x3x

Equipments (Amazon Affiliate links)

• Steamer

Cup measurements

Ingredients

• ½ cup Chana dal
• 4 Red chilli
• 1 teaspoon Fennel / Soambu/ Saunf
• 2 Onion
• 3 Tomato
• 1 teaspoon Ginger garlic paste
• 1 & ½ teaspoon Red chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon Coriander seeds powder
• ½ teaspoon Garam masala powder optional
• ¼ teaspoon Turmeric
• Salt - as needed
• 10 Mint leaves
• 2 tablespoon Coriander leaves chopped
• 1 sprig Curry leaves

To temper

• 2 tablespoon Oil
• 1 inch Cinnamon
• 1 Cardamom
• 1 Cloves
• 1 Biryani leaf
• 1 teaspoon kal pasi optional
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

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Instructions

• Soak channa dal for 3 hrs.  First grind chilli, fennel and salt.
• Then add the drained chana and grind coarsely. Do in batches to ensure even grinding. Do not grind smoothly.
• Grease idli plates and fill the moulds with the ground mixture, make a dent at the middle to ensure easy cooking. Steam cook for 10-15 minutes.
• Once cooled, break it roughly. I forgot to add curry leaves before steaming, so added after breaking. Heat a pan with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order.
• Add finely chopped onion and fry till transparent. In goes ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute in medium flame. Add finely chopped tomatoes and all the powders – red chilli powder, dhaniya powder (coriander powder) and turmeric powder.Sprinkle required salt for the gravy.
• Fry for a minute or until the masala blends and becomes mushy. Add 2-3 cups water depending on thick or thinner gravy you want.
• Bring to boil and add the crumbled dal and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Once the oil floats on top and the gravy becomes thicker. Add 2 tablespoon coconut milk ( I added Store bought in the updated video)  if adding and bring to boil again. garnish with chopped coriander and mint leaves.

Video

Notes

• Add enough water as it requires lots of water.
• Mint leaves adds very nice flavor to the gravy.
• If using masala vada, use 6-8 vadai depending on the size.
• You can add 2 slit green chillies if you want extra hot gravy.
• Kal pasi adds a nice hotel style flavour, do add if you have.
• Adding coconut milk in last step enhances the flavour and taste (Tip from Revathy shanmugam mam)

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InstagramMention @rakskitchen or tag #rakskitchen if you have tried this recipe.

Steamed version Method

1. Soak chana dal for 3 hrs.  First grind chilli, fennel and salt.
   
2. Then add the drained chana and grind coarsely. Do in batches to ensure even grinding. Do not grind smoothly.
   
3. Grease idli plates and fill the moulds with the ground mixture, make a dent at the middle to ensure easy cooking. Steam cook for 10-15 minutes.
   
4. Once cooled, break it roughly. I forgot to add curry leaves before steaming, so added after breaking. Heat a pan with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order.
   
5. Add finely chopped onion and fry till transparent. In goes ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute in medium flame. Add finely chopped tomatoes and all the powders – red chilli powder, dhaniya powder (coriander powder) and turmeric powder.Sprinkle required salt for the gravy.
   
6. Fry for a minute or until the masala blends and becomes mushy. Add 2-3 cups water depending on thick or thinner gravy you want.
   
7. Bring to boil and add the crumbled dal and simmer for 10 minutes.
   
8. Once the oil floats on top and the gravy becomes thicker. Add 2 tablespoon coconut milk ( I added Store bought in the updated video)  if adding and bring to boil again. garnish with chopped coriander and mint leaves.
   

Serve hot with hot set dosa  - the dosa you see below is nothing but soft thick dosas, made from idli dosa batter.

Deep fried version

When Aj's classmate's mom Raji told this recipe it sounded simple to try. I have not tasted vada curry before, so was very clueless about the taste and outcome.

She is a great cook and I believe her recipe to T.

But the garlic, fennel in the curry with the vada along with the flavour of coriander leaves and curry leaves is simply superb.

You can make use of the leftover masala vadai. The next day it can make you a side dish for your breakfast.

Ingredients

Chana dal/ Kadala paruppu - ½ cup

Onion - 2

Garlic - 6 flakes

Sambar powder - 2 tsp

Turmeric - ⅛ tsp

Green chilli - 2

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp

Salt - as needed

*Leftover masala vadas can be used, use 6 vadais

To temper

Oil - 1 tbsp

Cinnamon - 1 small piece

Cloves - 2

Fennel seeds - ½ tsp

Bay leaf - 1

Method

1. Soak dal for 3 hours, drain water and grind to a paste. Add little water while grinding if needed. Cube onion and peel garlic and cut into two, slit the green chillies and keep aside.

2. Mix salt accordingly in this and mix well. Make bite sized pakodas/ vada out of it, no need to worry about the shape. Deep fry in oil until cooked.

3. Heat a pan with oil and season with the items given under ‘To temper’ table. Add fennel seeds lastly and wait until it splutters. Add cubed onion, garlic and fry till golden brown here and there.

4. Add 1 and ½ cups of water, turmeric, sambar powder, required salt and bring to boil.

5. Add the prepared vadas and simmer and boil for 5-8 minutes in medium flame.

6. Boil until the vadas gets soft and gets absorbed well in the gravy. Stir in such a way to mash it if needed to get a thick curry. Garnish with coriander leaves and curry leaves.

Notes

• Adding half the salt in the vada and half in the gravy is must. Otherwise the taste wont be homogenous.
• The key is to get the vadas soaked well in the gravy and get soft. The vada should not be hard. So make sure the vada batter is soft and if you want can add a pinch of cooking soda in the vada batter.
• Simmer and cook to get the soft texture.
• Left over vadas works great for this recipe. You can also steam the vadas instead of deep frying. The result wont be changed.

Serve hot with Dosa the best. Idli also gets matched with this well. I can even eat as such .