Dahi Vada

Summer lunch, and the dahi vada come out of the fridge last, in a wide steel plate, sitting low in thick white curd. Someone spoons dark tamarind chutney over them in slow lines, then roasted jeera powder crushed by hand, then a dusting of red chilli that sits on the white like paint. Press one with the back of a spoon and the curd runs out of it. There is barely anything to chew. It is cold, sweet, sour and faintly smoky from the jeera, all at once.

The vada are fried and then soaked, so the oil never has to do anything showy, but it does have to be clean tasting. Wooden cold pressed groundnut oil sits comfortably at 175 to 180C, which is the range that gives you a pale golden vada cooked all the way through in four or five minutes without a hard crust. A hard crust is the enemy here, because it stops the vada drinking the curd later. It is unrefined, so keep the flame at medium and let it come up slowly. The tamarind chutney is sweetened with organic jaggery, which gives it a dark, deep sweetness that suits sour curd far better than sugar.

Two steps decide a soft dahi vada. First, whip air into the batter until a small ball of it floats when dropped into a bowl of water. If it sinks, the vada will be dense and heavy no matter what you do afterwards. Second, drop the vada straight from the kadhai into warm water and let them sit fifteen minutes. Warm water, not cold. It draws out the oil and lets the vada swell into a sponge. Cold water tightens them.

How to make it

1. Rinse the urad dal and moong dal together until the water runs clear, then soak in plenty of water for 4 to 5 hours. Drain completely, shaking the colander so no water clings.
2. Grind with the ginger, green chillies and only 1/4 cup of ice cold water, pushing the batter down and adding water a spoon at a time only when the mixer stalls. You want a thick, smooth, fluffy batter, not a pourable one. Less water now means softer vada later.
3. Tip into a bowl, add the hing and salt, and whip briskly in one direction with your hand or a spatula for 4 to 5 minutes. The batter will lighten in colour and grow in volume.
4. Do the float test. Drop a small ball of batter into a bowl of water. It should rise and float on the surface. If it sinks, whip for another 3 minutes and test again.
5. Heat the oil on medium to about 178C. A drop of batter should rise to the surface in 2 to 3 seconds and bubble steadily without browning at once.
6. Wet your palm, take a spoonful of batter, flatten it slightly and slide it into the oil. Do 5 or 6 at a time. Fry 4 to 5 minutes, turning once, until they are an even pale gold. Do not let them go dark brown, a thick crust will not soak.
7. Lift them straight from the kadhai into the warm salted water. Keep them submerged with a small plate and soak 15 minutes. They will swell noticeably and feel spongy.
8. Lift one out and press it flat between your palms, gently but firmly, to squeeze the water out without tearing it. Lay the squeezed vada in a wide dish.
9. For the chutney, simmer the tamarind, dates and jaggery in 2 cups water for 15 minutes, cool, blend, sieve and cook 5 minutes more with the cumin powder until it coats a spoon. Cool completely.
10. Whisk the chilled curd with the sugar and salt until smooth and pourable, then pour it over the vada so they are fully covered. Refrigerate at least 2 hours so they take the curd in.
11. Just before serving, spoon over the tamarind chutney and green chutney if you have it, then dust with roasted cumin powder, chilli powder, black salt and chaat masala. Scatter coriander and pomegranate. Serve cold.

Tips

• The float test is the whole recipe. If the batter ball sinks, nothing later will save the vada. Whip longer, in one direction, until it floats.
• Warm water for the soak, never cold. Warm water pulls out the frying oil and lets the vada open up. Cold water makes them tight and rubbery.
• Grind with as little water as possible, and use ice cold water. A hot mixer jar makes a slack batter and heavy vada. Grind in two batches if your jar heats up.
• Make them a day ahead. Fry, soak, squeeze and refrigerate the vada in curd overnight. The chutney and the dusting go on only at the last minute.
• Use fresh curd, not sour. Sour curd fights the tamarind chutney. If yours has turned, whisk in 2 tbsp of fresh cream or a little milk to soften it.
• For a lighter version, cook the same batter in an appe pan with a few drops of oil in each mould, then soak the same way.