Vadacurry , a delicious side dish for Idlis and dosas.

Ingredients needed for Vadacurry / Vadai curry 
1 cup Bengal gram dhal
1  big sized Onion
2 Tomatoes chopped
Handful curry leaves
Coriander leaves
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
2-3 green chillies
1 cup freshly grated coconut
2 tsps ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Mustard seeds
2 tsps chilli powder
Oil for frying
Salt to taste

How to prepare Vadacurry / Vadai curry 
Clean, wash and soak Bengal Gram Dal / Channa Dal for about 3 hours.
Drain the water and then grind the soaked dal to a coarse paste.
Add chopped coriander leaves and salt to taste. Mix well with the batter.
Heat oil in a deep frying pan. As ot gets hot, make small balls out of the thick batter.
Deep fry them till they are half done. Remove and keep aside.

Now to prepare the gravy, 
Heat oil in a pan, splutter mustard seeds, cumin seeds and then curry leaves.
When the leaves start turning colour add the chopped onions and fry till they are golden.
Add chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, chilli powder, ginger and garlic pastes.
When the oil starts oozing out of the sides and the gravy turns thicker, add the nicely ground coconut and green chillies  paste .
Let it start boiling, then simmer and cover for 5 minutes or till the raw smell goes.
Now crumble the vadas  and add them to the boiling gravy. Add water if needed and adjust the consistency according toyour taste.

Points to note: 
Do not fry the vadas to a golden colour, as it will be difficult to crumble while adding to the curry. The taste also will not come out right.
The vadas should just get cooked  and they will be white in colour. This will be the right vadas for the Vadacurry.
If you like you can add garam masala but it is just not needed, only optional.
This Vadacurry goes very well with Idlis, Dosas, Chappathies  and Pooris.
The recipe is an easy one and can be easily cooked, only that the dal needs time to soak.