Arati Puvvu VadaluIngredients:Plantain Flower 1 smallChana Dal 1 cupOnion 1Green Chiles 3-5Cilantro few sprigsSalt to tasteOil for deep fryingMethod of preparation:Remove the petals and seperate the flowers.Remove the hard covering and hard stem in each flower.Refer to this plantain flower.Chop the flowers finely, apply salt and leave aside.Wash under water and squeeze all the water out.Peel and finely chop onion.Remove stems, wash and finely chop green chiles.Wash and roughly chop cilantro.Wash and soak chana dal for 5 hours.Drain the water, wash thoroughly and grind the soaked chana dal coarsely without adding water.Heat oil in a deep frying pan on medium high heat.Combine the squeezed plantain flowers with ground chana dal, chopped onion, green chillies, cilantro and salt.Test the oil by dropping small amount of above plantain flower mixture into oil. If the batter rises quickly then the oil is ready.Take a lemon sized amount of above mixture onto left hand and press it lightly with right hand to form a 2 inch disk.Drop the disk into hot oil slowly and repeat the same with remaining plantain flower mixture until the frying pan is full.Fry the disks on both sides until golden brown and remove onto absorbent paper.Make sure the oil is not smoking hot before you start the next batch.Serve hot as a snack or serve with rice and ghee.Notes: Don’t leave the flowers outside for long for they turn black easily.
Alasanda VadaIngredients:Black-eyed Peas / Bobbarlu 1 cupOnion 1 smallGreen Chiles 2Ginger 1 inch pieceCloves 1Cinnamon 1/2 inch pieceBroken Dried Red Chiles 2Curry Leaves 8-10Salt to tasteOil for deep fryingMethod of preparation:Wash and soak black-eyed peas in water for 6-8 hrs.Peel, wash and finely chop onion.Peel and mince the ginger.Remove stems, wash and finely chop green chiles.Wash and tear curry leaves into small pieces.Grind soaked black-eyed peas, clove, cinnamon, red chiles and salt coarsely adding least amount of water required.Heat oil in deep vessel on medium high heat.In a mixing bowl, mix the ground black-eyed pea mixture with chopped onion, ginger, green chiles and curry leaves.Take 1- 1 1/2 inch sized ball out of above black-eyed pea mixture.Place the ball on left hand and press it lightly to form a 2 inch disk.Deep fry the disks until golden brown on both the sides.Drain on absorbent paper and serve hot with any chutney.Notes: If black-eyed pea mixture is runny, add rice flour to tighten it a little.
Gatti PakodiIngredients:Rice flour 1 cupPlain flour 1/2 cupGinger 1/2 inch pieceGreen chillies 4Salt to tasteOil for deep fryingMethod of preparation:Peel and chop ginger coarsely.Remove stems and wash green chillies.Grind green chillies and ginger in a blender.In a wok, heat oil on medium high.In a vessel, mix rice flour, plain flour, ground green chilli ginger and salt using 3 tbsps of hot oil(use above one).Combine into a soft dough(chapati kind) using little water as needed.Make 2-3 inch sized cylinders out of 1 inch balls and flatten them on plastic sheet with right thumb.Take a bunch of flattened dough portions and put in hot oil.Turn them often and remove when golden brown or when dark brown(for later use).Serve immediately(if golden brown) or store tight for dark brown ones.Notes: Make sure the pakodi cylinder dough is made flat enough before frying for good crunch.
