Vada (Aama Vadai) and Coconut Rice (Narali Bhat)

Aama Vadai

Ingredients:

1) Chana Dal - 1 cup
2) Toor Dal - 1/2 cup
3) Urad Dal - 1/2 cup
4) Ginger - 1 inch long
5) Green chillies - 5-6 (or more if you like it spicy)
6) Curry leaves - 10
7) Salt
8) Oil to deep fry


Directions:

1) Soak the toor dal and urad dal together and the chana dal separately for a few hours (overnight).
2) Grind the toor dal and urad dal together to a fine paste in the mixer along with the ginger and green chillies. The mixture should be thick with less water. Now grind part of the chana dal with this mixture and mix in the rest of chana dal as it is.
3) Chop the curry leaves finely and mix it in. Add salt to taste.
4) Heat oil and deep fry vada shaped balls of the mixture. (The shape should be flatter than what you see in the pictures, kind of like medu vada)
Enjoy this hot with ketchup or chatni!



Coconut Rice

Ingredients:

1) Basmati Rice - 1 cup
2) Jaggery - 3/4th cup
3) Elaichi pods - 3 or 4
4) Cloves - 3 or 4
5) Peppercorns - 5 or 6
6) Ghee - 1 or 2 spoons
7) Cashews - 10 to 15
8) Raisins - 10 to 15
9) Freshly grated coconut - 1 cup


Directions:

1) Heat the ghee and saute the cashews in it till light brown and keep aside.
2) Start cooking the rice separately until it is almost done but not too well done.
3) In the same ghee saute the elaichi, cloves and peppercorns. When you feel the flavour rising from them add the coconut and jaggery and saute till all the jaggery melts.
4) Add this mixture to the almost done rice, along with cashews and raisins and mix it up well so that the jaggery gels in with all the rice.
5) Steam it for 15 minutes and serve with something spicy to contrast the sweetness.


Note: I have never had the combination of vada and coconut rice together before. This was the first and they make a good combo especially if you don't have a sweet tooth. The sweet coconut rice can also be eaten with a pickle.