Dahi vada chaat

Serves four Ingredients:

200g split urad daal salt to taste handful of finely chopped coriander leaves 1 tsp coarsely crushed peppercorns 1 ½ tsp fresh ginger, puréed 1-2 tsp green chilli paste vegetable oil for deep frying

For the chaat:

300ml of the yoghurt sauce ½ tsp ground cumin ¼ tsp chilli powder 5-6 tbsp tamarind-date chutney 5-6 tbsp coriander-mint chutney

Method:

To make the vada you need to start a day in advance. Wash and soak the urad daal overnight. Make sure there is enough water covering the daal. Then drain and place in a grinder and grind to a thick batter. Add a little water if needed to get the right consistency.

Leave the batter for three to four hours before adding the salt, chopped coriander, crushed peppercorns, fresh ginger and chilli paste. Mix to distribute the spices evenly. This mixture is ready to fry.

In a pan, heat some vegetable oil and when hot enough, carefully drop tablespoonfuls of the mixture into the hot oil. Just fry a few to taste and adjust the seasoning. Fry in small batches until golden brown and cooked through.

Fill a large bowl with cold water and place the fried vada into the cold water. Push them down if they rise; they must be submerged in the water. Cover with clingfilm and leave in the refrigerator for half an hour. This process makes the vada soft and eliminates any excess oil from frying.

When ready, take the vada out of the refrigerator and gently squeeze out the water from each vada and dip them in the yoghurt sauce and then place onto a serving dish. The serving dish should be large enough to place the vada in a single layer.

Pour the remaining yoghurt sauce over the top and drizzle the tamarind-date chutney and the coriander-mint chutney over the top.

Sprinkle the ground cumin and the chilli powder over the top. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.