This crispy tea time snack is bound to be your favorite after just one try. Anything fried is tasty, but nothing beats this crunchy vadai that’s made with spinach, dhal, and spices.
Put all dhals and rice in a bowl 
Soak in water 
Grind red chilies and fennel seeds 
Add chopped spinach, onion, grated ginger, garlic powder, and asafetida to a bowl 
Mix in the ground dhal with spices 
Add remaining ground dhal, turmeric, and salt to the bowl 
Mix well 
Make even sides balls with the dough 
Heat oil in a frying pan 
Once hot, flatten the balls and place in the hot oil 
Once golden brown, carefully flip the vadai over 
Place on a plate lined with paper towels
Spinach Vadai
This crispy tea time snack is bound to be your favorite after just one try. Anything fried is tasty, but nothing beats this crunchy vadai that's made with spinach, dhal, and spices.
Servings: 40 pieces
Ingredients
- 1½ cup channa dhal
- ¼ cup toor dhal
- 1 tbsp urad dhal
- 1 tbsp raw rice
- 1½ tsp fennel seeds
- 4 red chilies (adjust to taste)
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp asafetida (also known as hing or perungayam)
- ½ tsp grated ginger
- 3 cups spinach (chopped)
- 1 cup onion (chopped)
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves
- 10 curry leaves (chopped)
- 1 tbsp rava (sooji) (optional)
- 1-2 tbsp water (for grinding)
- water as needed (to soak the dhal)
- salt
Instructions
- Add channa dhal, toor dhal, urad dhal, and raw rice to a bowl. Wash thoroughly and soak in water for 2 hours.
- Next, wash the spinach and chop it. Place it in a different mixing bowl.
- Then, add chopped onion, grated ginger, garlic powder, and asafetida. Set aside.
- Drain the water from the soaked dhal and keep the dhal aside.
- Now, add red chilies and fennel seeds to a blender jar.
- Then, add a handful of the soaked dhal and grind until a coarse texture forms. Add this mixture to the bowl with the chopped spinach.
- Grind the rest of the dhal to a coarse consistency. Add 1-2 tbsp of water, as needed.
- Add the ground mixture to the mixing bowl.
- Mix in turmeric powder, salt, chopped coriander leaves, and curry leaves. Mix well.
- Roll the mixture into even sized balls.
- Now, heat oil in a frying pan. Flatten the balls into discs and carefully fry them in the hot oil.
- Once the vadai gets cooked on one side, carefully turn the vadai so it cooks on the other side. The vadai should become golden brown.
- Once the vadai becomes golden brown, remove the vadai from the oil with a slotted spoon to drain any excess oil.
- Place the vadai on a plate lined with paper towels to remove excess oil.
- Depending on the size of the pan, fry few vadai at a time.
- Serve hot with coconut chutney.
Notes
- This vadai mix may get watery when frying. If this happens, add 1 tbsp of sooji (rava) to absorb the water. This will also make the vadai more crispy.
- See below for additional varieties or sides that go well with this dish.
- Colorful Chutneys
