Baked Spinach Vada

Baked Spinach Vada and Spicy Cashew Yogurt Dipping Sauce

Vada or Vadai (pronounced “vuh-duh”) is a staple of South Indian cuisine. There are many varieties of vada but the base is usually the same - a batter made from lentils with spices and aromatics added to it. The dough or batter is then formed into a doughnut or cookie shape and deep fried. It is a crispy snack enjoyed with chutney or sambar (a spicy lentil stew) pretty much at any time of the day.

The vada made here is a version of masala vada, which is a mixture of onions, ginger, garlic, spices, and herbs (masala) along with chana dal which is a type of lentil (dal means lentil). In fact chana dal is called a lentil, but it comes from a brown chickpea (kala chana), which is dried, husk removed, and split in half!

So this recipe is actually my mom’s so you know it’s going to be good. She makes her vada with spinach so it’s super tasty and she does fry hers. I found a way to bake them and they still taste as delicious. Baking is a great way to retain the nutrition from all of the ingredients. Why not enjoy your snacks and keep them healthy! I also added some kale, cashews and plantains for more flavor, nutrition, and crunchy texture. This is an easy snack to prep in advance, once you have all of your ingredients. You can batch prep all of the batter ahead of time and bake as you need them!

Here’s the recipe, I’ve also included a recipe for a spicy cashew yogurt dip to enjoy with your vada. Just a heads up, take a look at the ingredient list and see if you have what you need. The chana dal needs to be soaked overnight or for at least 3 hrs. Make sure to plan in advance. Please feel free to reach out if you have any comments or questions! Enjoy and happy snacking!

Prep time: 45 mintues

Cook time: 35 minutes

Cooking Tools: knife, cutting board, food processor, spice grinder, large mixing bowl, rubber spatula, baking tray, parchment paper

Ingredients:

1/2 small onion
1/2 inch fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves
1 small green chili
2 dried red chilies
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
8-10 leaves mint
8-10 curry leaves
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tbsp sea salt
1 cup chana dal (soak overnight on kitchen counter)
3 tbsp besan flour
1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and drained thoroughly

3 stalks fresh kale

1/4 cup cashews

1 medium ripe plantain (yellow but firm)
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp canola oil or coconut oil (or any neutral flavor oil)

Recipe:
There may be many ingredients here but all you need to do the chopping and pureeing and mix together.

Preheat the oven for 400ºF and let’s get started!

Drain and wash chana dal at least 3 times or until water runs clear. Set aside 1/4 cup of dal to be added back in later.
In a food processor or wet grinder (this is my preference), add the dal with 1/4 cup of water and grind down until it becomes a grainy, fluffy paste. 5-10 minutes depending on your processor or grinder. Add more water to thin out the consistency. See pictures below to see the consistency.
While the dal is grinding, diced the onions finely. Add to a mixing bowl.
Then in a smaller processor or spice grinder blend the ginger, garlic, green chili and red chili with 1 tbsp of oil. If you don’t have a smaller processor, you can toss these ingredients into the processor with the dal so they can all puree together. If you do, then add the ginger-garlic-chili paste to the mixing bowl.
Finely chop cilantro, mint and curry leaves. Set aside or add to your large mixing bowl.
Remove the inside stem from 3 kale leaves. Stack together and finely chop till the pieces are very small, dime sized or smaller is great. Add to the mixing bowl.
If you haven’t done so already open a bag of chopped spinach and empty out about 1/3 - 1/2 of the bag into a strainer. Run warm water over it until it completely thaws out. Ring out all of the water. This should give you about 1 cup of spinach. Add to the mixing bowl.
Take the plantain, score the skin lengthwise. Cut off each end, then peel the skin off. Cut the plantain in a small dice. You can add straight to the mixing bowl or if you prefer you can lightly sautée in oil for a few minutes on medium-low heat. This will give the plantain a more caramelized flavor and bring out the sweetness. After cooking you may add to the mixing bowl.
Between a folded piece of parchment paper, a thin towel or a plastic storage bag, add the cashews. Crush the cashews with a rolling pin or heavy bottomed pan till the pieces are much smaller, but not completely ground up. Add to the mixing bowl.
Add the pureed dal along with the spices, 1/4 oil and whole lentils that you set aside earlier.
All the ingredients should be in the bowl at this point. Mix together with a rubber spatula. Make sure everything is well combined. Set aside for a few minutes so all the flavors mingle together.
You can put this into a plastic container and refrigerate for later or you can bake right away. I say bake right away!
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Where you plan on spooning the vada batter, drop a little bit of canola or coconut oil in it’s place so it can brown nicely. Cooking spray works as well
Take a spoon (soup spoon or cookie scoop works great) and drop a nice mound onto each oiled spot. Give plenty of room between each mound because you will spread these out, like cookies.
With your fingers pressed together, pressed down on each mound and flatten, like a cookie. You can shape the vadas into a more round shape for more even cooking. Make sure the surface is even as well.
That’s it! Pop into the oven 400ºF for 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, flip over and cook for another 20 minutes.

Now you get to enjoy these tasty, crunchy, spicy and lightly sweet baked spinach vadas. They are truly addictive and you will get the routine down once you make them again! Enjoy :)
Take a look below for the Spiced Cashew Yogurt that’s a great compliment to this delicious snack!

Vada batter when it is all mixed together

Spoon a mound of batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet

Spiced Cashew Yogurt - Dipping Sauce

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Tools: knife, cutting board, small sautée pan, spice grinder

Ingredients:

1 tsp canola or coconut oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 dried red chili

4-5 curry leaves

1/4 inch ginger, skin removed

1/4 cup roasted chana dal or pre-soaked chana dal as in baked vada

150 g cashew yogurt ( I prefer the Foragers’s brand and make a 50/50 blend of their regular cashew yogurt with their protein coconut-cashew yogurt)

1 tsp lemon juice

2tbsp water

1/2 tsp salt

Recipe:

In a sautee pan heat up oil to med heat.
Add mustard seeds and wait till they start to pop, reduce the heat to medium low.
Add the lentils. They should not get dark, just very lightly toasted.
Break the red chili in half, add to pan. Then add the curry leaves.
Turn the heat off and swirl around the ingredients (this is called tadka)
In a spice grinder or mini food processor, add ginger, tadka, lemon juice and one or two spoons of the yogurt. Add a little water to make it easier to blend.
When all ingredients are completely smooth, like a dressing, move to a serving dish.
Mix in the rest of the yogurt, water, and salt. Check for seasoning and adjust.

Enjoy this creamy, nutty and spicy dressing along with your baked vada. It’s an irresistible combination!