CHETTINAD VAZHAIPOO VADAI
January 19, 2021CHETTINAD VAZHAIPOO VADAI
Chettinadu cuisine is famous for its wonderful aromatic preparations. It includes lots of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes like idiyappam, kozhukattai, appam, paniyaram, vellaipaniyaram, kalkandu paniyaram, Chettinadu chicken, pepper chicken, and the list goes on... One of the key features of this cuisine is its detailed and delicate method of preparing every dish. They pay attention to every detail of the dish from selecting the ingredients to serving them as a perfect combo.
As a person who was born and brought up in chettinadu, I always admire their way of approaching food. It's like a ritual, every action of them always has a purpose. It's not just about the food their lifestyle itself is so unique. I can say they were the most disciplined people you can ever see. The way they carry their family values, the way they treat people, the way they maintain their home and themselves it's always spotless. Regardless of their financial backgrounds, their basic qualities remain the same.
Even I would say this recipe itself can show all those things I said before are true. Because this recipe is one of the most time-consuming dishes I have ever prepared as a side dish. But when I am in school my classmates used to bring them for lunch in their lunch boxes. It means the mother has done all those things fresh in the morning before 8.30am max. Even the vadai size won't be in the regular size they will be 1inch mini circles this is to make sure the vazhaipoo got cooked properly.
I have no words to describe my admiration for their dedication👏. Basically, I and my husband are from the neighborhood places. But better than my family his family had close contact with the local people and my mother-in-law learned from them hence that's their native were as my family is just new to the region my mom never prepared this. When I was in school I always felt mouthwatering when I saw those tiny aromatic vazhaipoo vadai in my classmates' lunchboxes because of my hesitation I never asked my friends😓. Finally, I was able to taste them when my mother-in-law prepared them at home.
And here I am with the recipe to share with you all so that you can also experience the delicacy of this chettinadu style of cooking. Yes I know it's quite a task to clean and prepare the banana flowers but because of its medical values and its wonderful taste, it's worth every effort you put. And I would suggest taking as much help from your family members to make it a wonderful memory by spending some time with your loved ones while making Vazhaipoo Vadai. Here are the ingredient lists as follows,
INGREDIENTS:
1. Vazhaipoo(Finely chopped) -2cups.
2. Toor dhal -1/2cup.
3. Channa dhal -1cup.
4. Red chili -3-5nos.
5. Onion or Shallots -1cup(finely chopped).
6. Garlic -2-3gloves.
7. Ginger -1inch pice.
8. Fennel Seeds -1/2tsp.
9. Salt -as per taste.
10. Hing -1/2tsp.
11. Curry Leaves -a few.
12. Oil(For Deep Fry) -as required.
METHOD:
To Prepare the Banana flower:
1. To start with separate the florets which are attached to the bracts or large petals at the top.
2. Then remove the nerve(Stigma) with the sticky bulb-like top which will be stiff and firm other than the rest of the sticks(Stamens).
3. Sometimes if it's hard you have to remove the papery-like covers(Tepal or Perianth) that protect the Stamens and Stigma in the center of the florets.
4. If those papery covers(Tepal) are soft then no need to remove them.
5. The reason why we are removing those two parts from the florets is that it will be hard to cook them or it will be hard for digestion as well.
6. When you keep collecting the florets layer by layer it will get the point that removing the large petals hard then the remaining part is called banana flower heart. It means you can use this heart as it is by chopping them finely.
7. After cleaning and collecting all the florets it's time to prepare the curd solution to soak the chopped banana florets.
8. To prepare one just take a bowl full of water and resolve 2 tablespoons of curd in it and then soak the florets in it to avoid it from turning brown in color.
To Prepare the Batter and Vadai:
1. In a bowl take toor dhal and channa dhal rinse it and soak it in water along with red chilis at least for 2-4hrs.
2. Once it is soaked completely and the dhal is doubled in size, now remove it from the water completely.
3. Now to the mixie jar add soaked red chili, fennel seeds, garlic, ginger, and salt required for the entire batter and grind them coarsely.
4. Then to the same jar add soaked dhal little by little and grind them to a coarse paste without adding any water.
5. Transfer the batter to a large mixing bowl and add finely chopped onion, banana florets, hing, and curry leaves and combine them thoroughly.
6. Check for seasoning and make necessary adjustments and then take a small portion of batter in your palms and flat them evenly.
7. Since we are making small fritters(vada) make a batch before heating the oil. You can put them on oil applied surface to avoid the batter sticking.
8. Once you prepared enough flitters switch on the oil.
9. When the oil is hot enough put prepared fritters one by one without disturbing any other fritters and fry them until it turns golden in color.
10. Then flip it carefully and let the other side cook completely and then remove them from oil and put them on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.
11. Finally our tasty, healthy, mouth-watering mini Chettinad Vazhaipoo Vadai is ready. Enjoy it with your family with lemon or coconut rice.
METHOD WITH PICTURES:
To Prepare the Banana flower:
Unfortunately, I am not able to take pictures of cleaning and preparing the Banana Flowers. And I will update the pictures as soon as possible.
To Prepare the Batter and Vadai:
1. In a bowl take toor dhal and channa dhal rinse it and soak it in water along with red chilis at least for 2-4hrs.
2. Once it is soaked completely and the dhal is doubled in size, now remove it from the water completely.
3. Now to the mixie jar add soaked red chili, fennel seeds, garlic, ginger, and salt required for the entire batter and grind them coarsely.
4. Then to the same jar add soaked dhal little by little and grind them to a coarse paste without adding any water.
5. Transfer the batter to a large mixing bowl and add finely chopped onion, banana florets, hing, and curry leaves and combine them thoroughly.
6. Check for seasoning and make necessary adjustments and then take a small portion of batter in your palms and flat them evenly. Since we are making small fritters(vada) make a batch before heating the oil. You can put them on oil applied surface to avoid the batter sticking.
7. Once you prepared enough flitters switch on the oil. When the oil is hot enough put prepared fritters one by one without disturbing any other fritters and fry them until it turns golden in color.
10. Then flip it carefully and let the other side cook completely and then remove them from oil and put them on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.
11. Finally our tasty, healthy, mouth-watering mini Chettimad Vazhaipoo Vadai is ready. Enjoy it with your family with lemon or coconut rice.
I am sure that this post is gonna be useful and interesting for you guys, if so I would love to know your experience and thoughts with me in the comment section. And If you had any doubts also feel free to contact me. Most of everything else always, "Stay Positive and Keep Smiling😀".
Here are some other Chettinadu veg recipes, Chettinadu Parangikkai Kulambu and Chettinadu Kaara Chutney.
1 comments
Thz one has all my Hearts! 💕 Awesome Post Saran! 🤤
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