Moong dal vada | Moong dal pakora | Mung dal vada | Lentil fritters
There’s nothing like crunchy dal pakoras on a rainy day or in winters with a hot cup of tea. With less than 10 ingredients, these 'moong & masoor dal' vada/pakoras are easy to make & highly addictive. Crispy & crunchy from outside, soft & light from inside, they are guaranteed to become a family favorite.
Servings 4 people
Calories 102kcal
Equipment
- Mixer/grinder/blender
- wok/pot for deep frying
- spider strainer/slotted spoon
- mortar & pestle
Ingredients
- 1 cup moong dal split & skinned, washed & presoaked (for at least 2 hours), drained
- ¼ cup masoor dal (red lentils), split & skinned, washed & presoaked (for at least 2 hours), drained
- 2 ½ tsp coriander seeds crushed & split in half
- 3 big garlic cloves
- 1-2 green chili
- 2 tsp salt or as per taste
- ½ tsp red chili powder or as per taste
- 1 ¼ cup spring onions sliced
- ½ cup coriander leaves finely chopped
- oil for frying
Instructions
Rinse & presoak lentils
- Check both dals for any small stones or sticks and remove them. In a big enough bowl, measure & add both dals. Add water to the bowl, then wash and drain. Repeat 3-4 times or till the water runs clear.
- Presoak in fresh water (up to 2cm over the dal) for at least 2 hours.
Prepare the other ingredients
- Using a mortar & pestle or a rolling pin, gently crush & roughly split the coriander seeds in half (it’s ok if some seeds are still whole). Remove the crushed seeds in a bowl.
- Peel the garlic cloves and roughly chop the green chilies. Make a rough garlic & green chilli paste using a mortar & pestle. Refer to notes for more information.
- Next, clean & wash the spring onions, trim the ends and finely slice them.
- Wash & finely chop the coriander leaves (I use the stalks as well).
Grind the lentils & aerate the batter
- Wash the dal once more before grinding & drain. Without adding any water, coarsely grind the lentils in a grinder. Depending on the grinder, you might have to grind it in batches.
- While grinding, pulse the grinder or grind 4-5 seconds at a time. Open the lid and scrape off the sides each time after you pulse/grind.
- Repeat till all the lentils are coarsely ground (it’s ok to have a few whole lentil pieces in the batter, do not grind it to a fine paste).
- Empty the lentil batter in a big enough bowl. Repeat with the remaining lentils.
- Once you have finished grinding all the lentils, using your hand (better & easier) or a spoon, continuously beat/whip the lentil batter in one direction for 4-5 minutes. This helps to aerate the batter and makes the pakoras soft & fluffy from inside. You will notice that the batter will lighten in color and swell a bit.
Add & mix other ingredients
- After whipping the lentil batter and aerating it, add the coriander seeds, garlic & green chili paste, salt, red chili powder, spring onions & coriander leaves. Gently mix.
- Taste the batter & adjust for seasoning by taking just a tiny bit of batter on a finger and putting it on the tip of the tongue. The batter should be a little salty and garlicky.
Deep fry
- Heat enough oil for deep frying on medium flame in a wok or a pot. The oil should be medium hot (refer to notes for more information).
- Using your hands or a spoon, quickly put in approx. 1 -1 ½ tsp of batter at a time in the oil. I prefer to use hands as I can be quick and it gives me more control while dropping the batter. Do not make pakoras too big or else they will take a very long time to cook.
- Take some batter in your hand towards the edge of your fingers and gently release the batter with your thumb in the oil.Make sure the pakoras are of the same size otherwise they will cook unevenly. Also, do not drop the batter from a height, it increases the chance of splatter. Gently release the batter as close to the oil as safely possible.
- Do not disturb them for at least a minute to minute and a half. After that, using a fork, gently turn over the pakoras.
- Keep frying till they are golden brown and remember to keep turning them in between. It will take around 4-5 minutes for a batch to be done on medium flame.
- Keep a close eye on the oil temperature and you might have to keep adjusting the flame while frying them to maintain the heat. The oil should be medium hot all the time. As a general guide, there should be consistent bubbles around the pakoras.
- Once done, spoon them out using a spider strainer/slotted spoon and drain the excess oil. Place them on a kitchen paper towel to help absorb any leftover oil.
- Mix the batter before putting the next batch in as the water will start separating from the batter due to salt. Repeat till all the batter is finished.
- Serve hot with coriander chutney, tamarind chutney or tomato sauce/ketchup.
Video
Notes
- 1 cup = 250 ml
- Serving size is for 4-6 people as a snack.
- You can easily double the recipe.
- These pakoras have to be made with presoaked lentils. Do not make them without presoaking the lentils. Plan ahead and it will be worth it!
- Since there are very few ingredients, each ingredient is important and therefore, I would not recommend to substitute any of these. Skipping or changing any of the ingredients will result in a completely different flavor & texture.
- You can also grind the garlic & green chili along with the lentils, but only if you are going to use the whole batter immediately. If you are not using the whole batter and want to keep some batter for later, then it would be better to make a garlic & green chili paste separately and then add it to the lentils.
- Preparing the batter in advance - You can grind the lentils & prepare the lentil batter in advance and refrigerate it. The lentil batter can be stored in the fridge in an air-tight container for a day or two. However, keep in mind -
- grind the lentils without garlic. You can add the garlic paste separately along with the rest of the ingredients when you are ready to fry
- do not add anything to the lentil batter till you are ready to fry
- bring the batter at room temperature before frying
- whip the batter for at least 4-5 minutes to aerate before frying
- Oil temperature
- It’s very important to have the oil at the right temperature. If the oil is too hot, the pakoras will brown quickly from outside but remain undercooked from inside. If the oil is not hot enough, the pakoras will absorb a lot of oil and become very oily.
- To check the oil temperature, put batter for just one pakora first, it should come up immediately. In that case, the oil is ready and immediately put in more pakora to fry. If the oil is not hot enough, wait for some more time before adding in more batter.
- Another way to check the oil temperature is by putting a wooden skewer/chopstick/wooden spoon handle in the oil. If you see bubbles coming around the wooden skewer, then the oil is ready.
- Check the post for success tips.
- Calories information is approximate, calculated using online Recipe Calorie & Nutrition Calculator. The calories does not take into account the method of cooking.
Nutrition
Calories: 102kcal