Medu vada (; ) is a South Indian breakfast snack made from ''

Vigna mungo ''Vigna mungo'', also known as black gram, urad bean, urid bean, mash kalai, uzhunnu parippu, ulundu paruppu, minapa pappu, uddu, or black matpe, is a bean grown in South Asia. Like its relative, the mung bean, it has been reclassified from the ...

'' (black lentil). It is usually made in a doughnut shape, with a crispy exterior and soft interior. A popular food item in

South Indian cuisine South Indian cuisine includes the cuisines of the five southern states of India—Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana—and the union territories of Lakshadweep, Pondicherry, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.Th ...

it is generally eaten as a breakfast or a snack.

Etymology

"Medu" is the

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

and

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

word for "soft"; "medu vada" thus literally means "soft fritter". The dish is often mentioned simply as "vada" on menus or as uddina vade

, urad vada, medhu vadai, ulundu vadai (

), garelu ( Telugu), uzhunnu vada (

), and batuk ( Nepali).

History

According to

Vir Sanghvi Vir Sanghvi (born 5 July 1956) is an Indian print and television journalist, author, columnist and talk show host. He has been a member of many professional, academic and government bodies including the National Integration Council. Currently, h ...

, the origin of ''medu vada'' can be traced with "some certainty" to the Maddur town in present-day

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

. The dish was made popular outside South India by

Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...

restaurateurs of

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

Preparation

The medu vada is made primarily of black lentils (urad dal) batter. The black lentils are soaked in water for several hours, and then ground to a paste. The paste may be flavoured with other ingredients such as

asafoetida Asafoetida (; also spelled asafetida) is the dried latex ( gum oleoresin) exuded from the rhizome or tap root of several species of ''Ferula'', perennial herbs growing tall. They are part of the celery family, Umbelliferae. Asafoetida is th ...

methi seeds Fenugreek (; ''Trigonella foenum-graecum'') is an annual plant in the family Fabaceae, with leaves consisting of three small obovate to oblong leaflets. It is cultivated worldwide as a semiarid crop. Its seeds and leaves are common ingredients ...

(fenugreek), ginger, cumin seeds, black pepper,

curry leaves A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradit ...

, chillies and coconut pieces. It is then patted into doughnut-shapes and fried in oil until golden brown. One variation involves baking instead of frying. Other variations of the dish involve use of

pulses In medicine, a pulse represents the tactile arterial palpation of the cardiac cycle (heartbeat) by trained fingertips. The pulse may be palpated in any place that allows an artery to be compressed near the surface of the body, such as at the nec ...

other than black lentils. For example, ''am-bada'' (or ''aama vadai'') is made with

chana dal In Indian cuisine, ''dal'' (also spelled ''daal'' or ''dhal''; pronunciation: , Hindi: दाल, Urdu: ) are dried, split pulses (e.g., lentils, peas, and beans) that do not require soaking before cooking. India is the largest producer of pu ...

(split chickpea lentil); occasionally, ''tuar'' (

pigeon pea The pigeon pea (''Cajanus cajan'') is a perennial legume from the family Fabaceae native to the Old World. The pigeon pea is widely cultivated in tropical and semitropical regions around the world, being commonly consumed in South Asia, South ...

) and ''masoor'' (

lentil The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest pro ...

) are also used.

Serving

The dish is usually served with sambar (lentil and vegetable stew) and

coconut chutney Coconut chutney is a south Indian chutney, a side-dish or a condiment, common in the Indian subcontinent. The condiment is made with coconut pulp ground with other ingredients such as green chillies, tamarind, salt, coriander and water. Coconut ...

. Along with

idli Idli or idly () is a type of savoury rice cake, originating from the South India,popular as breakfast foods in Southern India and in Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and ric ...

, it is often eaten as a breakfast. It is also eaten as a lunch starter or a snack. The medu vada is sometimes also served with

yogurt Yogurt (; , from tr, yoğurt, also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yogurt are known as ''yogurt cultures''. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bac ...

, as a

chaat Chaat, or chāt (IAST: ''cāṭ)'' () is a family of savoury snacks that originated in North India, typically served as an hors d'oeuvre or at roadside tracks from stalls or food carts across South Asia in North India, Pakistan, Nepal and B ...

snack (see

dahi vada Dahi vada is a type of '' chaat'' (snack) originating from the Indian state of Karnataka. It is prepared by soaking vadas (fried lentil balls) in thick dahi (yogurt). Names Dahi vada is also known as "dahi vade" () in Marathi, ''dahi barey/dah ...

). In

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

, on the day of

Maghe Sankranti Maghe Sankranti (, , Nepal Bhasa: ) is a Nepali festival observed on the first of Magh in the Vikram Sambat (B.S) or Yele calendar bringing an end to the winter solstice containing month of Poush. Tharu people celebrate this particular day as ...

, people make , which is eaten with a variety of boiled tubers such as yam,

taro Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Afri ...

, and sweet potato. Batuk is a traditional festive delicacy of both the Magar and

Khas Khas people (; ne, खस) popularly known as Khas Arya are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the Himalayan region of South Asia, what is now present-day Nepal, Indian states of Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Sikkim. Historical ...

communities of Nepal. Magar people prepare batuk on Maghi, a New Year festival celebrated on the same day of Maghe Sankranti. Magars also eat batuk during weddings, where the groom's family presents batuk to the bride's family alongside pig meat, alcohol, and

sel roti Sel roti () is a traditional Nepalese ring-shaped sweet fried dough made from rice flour. It is mostly prepared during Dashain and Tihar, widely celebrated Hindu festivals in Nepal as well as Sikkim, Kalimpong and Darjeeling regions in India. ...

. Newa people of Kathmandu valley have their own version of batuks, known as bara.

Tharu people The Tharu people are an ethnic group indigenous to the Terai in southern Nepal and northern India. They speak Tharu languages. They are recognized as an official nationality by the Government of Nepal. In the Indian Terai, they live foremost ...

in the southern part of west Nepal also make black lentil fritters known as bariya but it is flat or ball-shaped.

Gallery

File:Medu Vadas.JPG, Medu vadas served with coconut chutney File:Vada at Sagar Ratna restaurant, New Delhi.jpg, fried Medu vada with chutney File:Breakfast South India.jpg, A common South Indian breakfast: idli, medu vada, sambar and coconut chutney File:GKN Pongal Vada DSC 1069.JPG, Another common breakfast: medu vada, pongal, sambar and coconut chutney File:Dahi Vada or Dahi Bhalla.JPG, In form of

, with yogurt

References

External links

Medu Vada, South Indian Vada, Daal Vada

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. {{Sri Lankan cuisine Indian snack foods South Indian cuisine Sri Lankan snack food Sinhalese New Year foods Fritters Nepalese cuisine