From India Cookbook by Pushpesh Pant
Nigel gave me a two cookbooks for my birthday, and this is one of them. I didn’t have any Indian cookbooks so I am pretty excited to play with this book. This recipe calls for Urad Dal (whole or split black lentils, also called black gram) which I am sure will be much easier for you to get than it is for me here in Dixon! I just ordered some from Amazon so I can try this recipe out, plus I noticed it is used in many of the recipes in this book.
1 cup Urad Dal, rinsed and drained
1 tsp Basmati Rice, rinsed and drained
2 tsp Peppercorns
2 medium sized Carrots, grated
2 Green Chilles, de-seeded and finely chopped
1 x 1” piece fresh Ginger, peeled and chopped
Few Cilantro leaves, chopped
Vegetable Oil, for deep frying
Salt
Soak the urad dal and rice in a bowl of water for 3 hours. Transfer the dal and rice to a blender or food processor, season with salt and process to make a stiff, smooth batter. Add the remaining ingredients, except the oil, and mix well, then shape the batter into lemon-sized balls. Heat enough oil for deep-frying in a kadhai or deep heavy-based pan to 350F, or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds, then reduce the heat to low. Working in batches, deep-fry the bonda for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve hot.