Vadai more kulambu (lentil balls in buttermilk gravy)

vadai - lentil dumplings; More / moru / mor - buttermilk; kulambu / curry - gravy.

Usually I make this kulambu with fried vadas, but here I have baked them before adding to the gravy.. It is also known by the name , 'Paruppu urundai mor kulambu'. Vadai can be either fried / steam cooked / baked, according to our convenience.
Also click to see my Paruppu urundai kuruma kulambu, with garam masala. 
and urundai kulambu in puli kulambuTry this for a dinner along with piping hot rice and lemme know  how you liked it:)

To make the paruppu urundai /Dal balls /lentil dumplings:

Ingredients:

Channa dhal (kadalai paruppu)/ Bengal gram lentil - 1 cup.
salt - to taste (1 tsp)

onion - 1/2 cup
curry leaves- 1 sprig
coriander leaves (chopped)- 2 tbsp
Red chillies - 3
* cooking oil-250 ml. for frying (If we are making the balls by frying. We can steam cook or bake to get a healthy version) *

Method:

Wash and soak the dhal for 1 hour in water.
Drain the water.
Grind it in to a coarse mixture with red chillies, salt. Put it in a mixing bowl.
Wash the mixer / grinder with 1/2 cup of water and keep aside. This water can be used to thicken the curry. Keep 2 tbsp of batter aside. Mix this batter with the water we reserved from washing the mixer / blender.
Chop the onion,cilantro and curry leaves and mix them with the dhal mixture.
Make small balls out of the mixture (in the size of a lemon).
Place them over cookie sheet lined with greased aluminum sheet and bake in oven at 375 c for 8 minutes. Flip and bake for 2 minutes. Don't worry about cooking completely, just let it get a firm shape. Vadai will get completely cooked afterwards in the curry.

Vadai is ready now!

To make more kulambu:

Ingredients:

Thick curd (Plain Desi Yogurt) - 1 cup
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger - 2 inch
green chilli - 2
salt - to taste
oil - 1 tsp
mustard - 1/2 tsp
Dry red chilli - 2
curry leaves - 1 sprig
water - 2 cups

Method:

Remember we got some left over vadai batter in the mixer. Grind ginger , green chillies along with that batter to a fine paste and keep aside.
Pour it along with the liquids to a wok. Add turmeric powder, salt and boil with frequent stirring for 5 minutes. Add 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Put the baked vadai and cook covered in low heat for 5 more minutes. Cook till the vada gets completely cooked. Switch off.
Beat the curd with and add it to the boiling masala.
Heat oil in a pan.
Crackle some mustard seeds and add chopped dry red chillies with curry leaves.Add this tempering to the above.Garnish with chopped cilantro.

'Paruppu urundai more kulambu' is ready!

Serving suggestions:

Makes 12 vadai / lentil balls.
Serve hot over cooked rice. There is no need to make any extra dish, as we can have these yummy urundais soaking in the yogurt sauce as side dish.

Paruppu Urundai Kulambu (Lentil dumpling curry)

Happy Ugadi to all of you my friends!

'Paruppu Urundai kulambu'(Tamil) is an authentic South Indian recipe , with a lot of lentils and flavor. There are many versions. Basically we need to make a masal vadai batter and it is common in all the recipes. But the base curry can be a sambar like gravy or a spicy kuruma or a tamarind based curry or even a curd based curry (More kulambu) .
Also click to see my Paruppu urundai kuruma kulambu, with garam masala. 
and vadai more kulambu / paruppu urundai more kulambu
Moreover making the Urundai / ball also varies by region . Some people fry / steam cook the batter balls and add it to the curry , while the experts simply drop the raw balls in the boiling curry to cook it in that gravy itself.
I do not prefer dropping the raw balls in to the gravy, as it may not be successful always. The safest way is to steam cook the balls before adding to the curry.

All the above versions are unique and will taste great in its own way.
I am narrating here a tamarind based curry with steam cooked dhal balls.



To make the puli kulambu / Tamarind curry:
Ingredients:
Tamarind - 1 small key-lime size
red onion - 1
Tomato - 1
cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
mustard - 1/2 tsp
fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
curry leaves - 1 brig
oil - 1 tbsp
asafoetida - 1 pinch
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
coriander powder - 2 tsp
sambar powder - 1 tsp (optional)
turmeric powder - 1 pinch
water - 2 cups
salt - 2 tsp

Method:
Heat oil in a pan.
Crackle the mustard seeds , add fenugreek seeds , curry leaves, cumin and asafoetida.
Add the chopped onion and fry till it becomes soft.
Then add the chopped tomato and cook till it becomes mushy.
Then pour the tamarind extract.
As soon as it starts boiling , add 2 cups water , chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, sambar powder ,salt and close tightly with a lid.
Cook till the raw smell goes.The curry should be thin like rasam in this stage.
Put off fire and keep aside.

To make the paruppu urundai /Dal balls /lentil dumplings:
Ingredients:
Channa dhal/ Bengal gram lentil - 1 1/2 cup.
salt - to taste (1 tsp full)
ginger - 1 inch
onion - 1/2 cup
curry leaves- 1 brig
coriander leaves (chopped)- 2 tbsp
Red chillies - 3
cooking oil-250 ml. for frying (If we are making the balls by frying. I steam cooked)

Method:
Soak the dhal for 1 hour in water.
Drain the water.
Grind it in to a coarse mixture with red chillies, salt. Put it in a mixing bowl.
Wash the mixer / grinder with 1/2 cup of water and keep aside. This water will thicken the curry.
Chop the onion, ginger, cilantro and curry leaves and mix them with the dhal mixture.
Make small balls out of the mixture (in the size of a lemon). Keep 2 tbsp of batter without cooking. Mix this batter with the water we reserved from washing the mixer / blender.
Steam boil them in Idly baking style. (or) Deep fry them in oil (or) Bake in oven at 375 c for 30 minutes.

Now bring the base curry we made to a boil, add the batter paste we got.Add the steamed lentil balls . After the curry starts becoming thick put off fire. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Paruppu urundai kulambu is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Makes 15 big size lentil balls.
Can be served for 5 people.
Serve hot over cooked rice. There is no need to make any extra dish, as we already have the yummy urundais soaking in the curry as side dish.