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Dahi Vada – Moon Bhajias

12th October 2014 By Urvashi Roe 12 Comments

Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe

It’s Sharad Poonam (Full Moon).  Look up right now and you’ll see nothing but an overcast sky but on Friday morning when we woke up my girls and I marvelled for a few minutes at the moon.  It was like a huge golf ball in the sky shining so brightly in the crisp blue sky before the sun warmed up and shone it away.

Looking up at the moon in winter is a little custom for me and my girls when we wake up.  We used to have a little song they still sing to their dollies now.

“Good morning Mister Sunshine. How did you wake so soon? You scared the little stars away and shined away the moon”

The moon also always reminds me of dahi vadas.  It’s a random memory but when she was much smaller, my youngest daughter once called them ‘moon bhajias’ because they looked just like the moon.  I suppose I see her logic.  They are plump and round dumplings made with urad dhal and once smothered in yoghurt they do look a little moon like.

Full moon or no full moon, they are simple to make.  Cooling in summer as a dish on their own and perfect in winter for accompanying heavily spiced or ‘garam’ foods to bring cooling balance to the body.

I’ve used cup measures here because it’s easier to remember the proportions of one cup urad dhal to three cups of yoghurt.  The spice measures are also a guide.You should use more or less depending on your own palette.

Print Recipe

Dahi Vada

Servings: 15 -20 dumplings

Notes

Dahi Vada

Dahi Vada - Deep fried, moon shaped dumplings made from urad dhal, slathered in yoghurt and spices

You'll need
  • 1 cup urad dhal – white or split black urad dhal
  • ½ inch piece of ginger
  • 2 green chillies - optional
  • ½ tsp of bicarbonate of soda
  • sunflower oil for deep-frying
  • 3 cups plain yoghurt
  • Salt to taste
  • Handful chopped coriander
  • 2-3 tsp garam masala
  • 2-3 tsp red chilli flakes
 To make them
  1. Soak the urad dhal in water for overnight or for a minimum of 3-4 hours
  2. Wash and drain the urad dal.
  3. Fill a wok halfway with the sunflower oil and set to heat on a slow to medium flame.
  4. Prepare a large platter with kitchen paper to drain off your vadas once fried.
  5. Prepare a large bowl of water for your vadas to soak in.
  6. Put the urad dhal, ginger and green chillies into a blender and grind to a smooth paste.
  7. Add the the bicarbonate of soda and salt to your taste and mix well till the batter is light and fluffy. It should be a thick puree the consistency of shop bought hummus. Add a little water if needed.
  8. Take two spoons and scoop some batter into one. Using the other spoon make a quenelle or ball shape – this is your vada.
  9. Deep fry in hot oil on a slow flame till the vadas are golden brown, for about 10 minutes.
  10. Drain on the prepared platter of kitchen paper.
  11. Once all your vadas are fried, pop them into the bowl of water to soak for about half an hour.
  12. while they are soaking, prepare the yoghurt by whisking it together with some salt to your taste.
  13. Take your vadas out of the water and squeeze them so most of the water is out.
  14. Place a layer of yoghurt on your serving platter and then place all your vadas on top.
  15. Ladle over the rest of the yoghurt and then sprinkle over the shopped fresh coriander, garam masala and chilli flakes.

Do you have any recipes that remind you of the moon? 

Related

Filed Under: Light Bites, Recipes, Recipes Tagged With: curry, dahi vada, food, Gujarati, recipes

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kavey says

    13th October 2014 at 6:37 am

    Moon bhajias! How charming is that? Love the names kids have for things, sometimes!

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      13th October 2014 at 6:51 am

      Silly right? Too cute though

      Reply
  2. Elizabeth says

    13th October 2014 at 9:15 am

    Oh this sounds heavenly! Love the flavour combinations but I am appalled at my lack of knowledge about ingredients. I’ve never heard of urad dhal before – am I right assuming it’s a type of legume?

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      13th October 2014 at 9:49 am

      Yes it’s white split peas. I’ll tweet you a pic later

      Reply
  3. Katie Bryson (@cookingkt) says

    13th October 2014 at 9:52 am

    Your girls sound so adorable Urvashi… and your mornings sound like a huge contrast to the boy-fuelled mayhem over here! Loving the Moon Bhajias… they sounds super tasty!

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      13th October 2014 at 9:54 am

      Ha ha! Not so adorable this morning. I had little grumpalumps!

      Reply
  4. Food Ren (@RenBehan) says

    13th October 2014 at 11:51 am

    I agree the name of this dish is so sweet. My baby has had some very disturbed nights because of the full moon. Perhaps I should make this dish!

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      13th October 2014 at 5:12 pm

      Oh no! I wonder why that is? Really fascinating. Am sure an indian astronomer would be able to tell you

      Reply
  5. Jeanne Horak-Druiff says

    13th October 2014 at 3:26 pm

    Oh I love dahi vadas! I always have them at Woodlands – one of my favourite Indian restaurants in London. Never thought to make my own though!!

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      13th October 2014 at 5:09 pm

      I love woodlands! We must go one day

      Reply
  6. bankjet says

    30th October 2014 at 9:46 am

    Reblogged this on Bankjet’s Weblog and commented:
    I like Dahi Vada very much

    Reply
    • Urvashi Roe says

      30th October 2014 at 8:34 pm

      Thank you 🙂

      Reply

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Hi I'm Urvashi!

I love food. This blog is a little glimpse into my foodie world which is an escape from two teenage girls, a busy job and my little cafe.

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