The weather in Hyderabad is Gorgeous right now with a capital ‘G’, I mean Hyderabad’s Green terrain and 3 beautiful roses in our roof garden of mostly Tulsi plants, thanks to the daily rain!
Being rainy, meri Choti eagerly asked her mother to make the proverbial Potato Bajji or Onion pakoda while she was dicing Vazhaipoo and tender Vazhaithandu into tiny bits, being the menu for tomorrow! The absence of aloo in the pantry eventually made her ask, “Amma, can you make bajji out of the uncut vazhaithandu discs? At this point of time most of it was chopped and only 6 discs were left uncut. Almost instantly, her mom decided to make Vazhai thandu pakodi which eventually transformed into crispy golden vadais!
This is how recipes are born! When you bond with family! Especially when at the other end of the globe, My badi Beti and Damaad are about to venture into the Outer Banks of North Carolina to test the waters for us. She would indeed be very pleased to have a few of these delicious vadais ‘For the Road’ today!
For the uninitiated, Vazhakkai (raw banana), Vazhaipoo (banana inflorescence) and Vazhaithandu (stem of the banana plant) are all edible delicacies of the South. The mention of these delicacies is enough to make her mouth water and she is indeed very joyous while patting out the vadais into hot oil! It instantly tugs her Kerala roots! You could see her priceless expression while she spoke about this recipe to her parents!
The recipe, according to her is simple and can be done in a flash!
Ingredients for those interested in a tasty-bite on a rainy day are as follows:
200 gms Besan, 50 gms of cornflour, 50 gms of rice flour, 2 large handfuls of diced Vazhaithandu, 1 large diced onion, two garden-green/red chilies slit and cut, coriander cut finely, a brief rain of hing, salt to taste, rain of juice from half a lemon. Blend all the ingredients well to the right consistency while the oil is getting heated.
Deep fry! Sit back and enjoy with a steaming hot cup of tea !!
* Photo credit: Ritu Gopal
