Crispy and spicy crackers made with peppercorns and urad dal.
I made this again this week 🙂 the very first version I made before two years 😀 I totally had this guilt that it was not perfect so tried again and it came out crispy perfect. I found the reason for it, I soaked for an hour which did not make it crispy I believe and this time I soaked for just 15 minutes.
Today is Krishna Jayanthi 🙂 Happy Birthday, Lord Krishna. For people who do not know what is Krishna Jayanthi, it’s an annual celebration of the birth of the Hindu deity Krishna. Images of Krishna’s infancy are placed in swings and cradles in temples and homes. His devotees celebrate his birthday by today sweets and savory by his name. This pepper vadai/ milagu vadai is usually done for another god “Hanuman”. But it’s a good savory to do for all gods. These vadai’s are usually connected through a thread and garlanded to the Lord. The below picture was my older version. I totally felt it was not that crispy so made it again 🙂 This time it was crispy crispy perfect!
This is the first time for me to make these. And I guess it turned out good. They used to give this in temple. And I always loved them. But never felt like trying them at home. But today is the day for me to try this. Soak the urad dal only for one hour. It will not have that texture otherwise. I soaked more than that this time 😉 so make sure.
- Urad dal - 1 cup
- Rice flour – 1 tbsp
- Pepper corns – 2 tsp (grounded)
- Ajwain - ½ tsp
- salt – ½ tbsp
- Oil – To fry
- Wash and soak the urad dal for 15 minutes and not more than that.Drain it nicely. If there is water, it can spoil the whole procedure. Grind it in the blender without adding water. The mixture should be little coarse not a paste.
- Ground the pepper again roughly. Just a single pulse would do.
- Take a bowl, mix the ground urad dal, hing, rice flour,ajwain and broken pepper.
- Heat oil in a kadai/pan, add one tbsp of oil to the vadai mixture.
- Take a banana leaf/Ziploc cover grease with oil. Grease your hands with oil to tap them thinly using hand or flat shaped cup. Take small lemon sized balls and pat it to make it a circle and thin vadai. Flatten it as thin as you can.Mark a hole in the center.
- Remove the vadai from the banana leaf and put them in the hot oil.
- Cook the vadai on both sides and till its crispier brown color on both sides.
2. When you drain the mixture, drain them completely. If there is water, the vadai’s wont be formed perfectly.
3. If the vadai batter is sticky and with more water, add more rice flour. Continue doing still it is in the perfect consistency.
4. Adding 1 tbsp hot oil to the batter will make the vadai crispier.
5. If you want crispier vadai, after frying them, try to refry them again. It will give nice colour and more crispiness. But mine was fine with the first time.
6. If you don’t have banana leaf, use Ziploc or polythene cover.
7. Marking a hole in the center will cook the vadai faster.
8. Ensure that vadais are patted thin, or else it’s going to be hard.
