Clem's Chickpea Vadai
I am certain that there is a hard link between our tongue (for taste) and ears (for sound) and the part of our brain where memories reside. Whenever we hear certain sounds or music, or receive certain tastes on our taste buds, certain memories are retrieved from the cobwebs of time in our brain. Such is the case with a grain patty from Southern India, specifically Tamil Nadu.
When I was growing up, going to the cinema was a past time (we had little alternative entertainment) for a window into the world outside where we lived. Like people all around the world, we would buy snacks to bring into the cinema to have while the screen flicked in front of us. Along the side of the Cathay Cinema in downtown Kuching, was a very small wooden stall run by a Tamil lady (who spoke fluent Hokkien). She would sell paper cones of roasted chickpeas, groundnuts and, my favourite, deep-fried vadai. We called the latter chu chu rodai - chu chu from the Malay for deep fried, and rodai, a derivation of vadai perhaps. When I returned to Kuching as an old man (2008), I discovered a lady selling the same wares outside the Kenyalang Cinema at Kenyalang Park. I think she said that either she or her Auntie used to sell at that stall outside the Cathay Cinema of my youth.
A great many years later, I learnt how to make this delicacy although I made it using dhal (which is typical) (see here). My gripe has always been that that grain turns out "hard" (chewey) on the tooth. But, the recipe which I came up with after some research, was verified by a Tamil from Tamil Nadu (. . . "Hi, Naga"). Last Sunday, at a gathering of Australians of Punjabi descent, some ladies told me that their vadai (which was on offer on the food table) was made with chickpeas. Being familiar with chickpeas which I soak and then boiled til soft as another type of snack, I immediately thought, "that's the key to a softer vadai!" Using chickpea would make this snack more akin to Lebanese felafel which is a very similar patty. Anyhow, here's how I make my chickpea vadai:
Clem's Chickpea
Vadai
Ingredients
- 4 X cups Chickpeas
- One large Red Onion
(or several small Bombay Onions); finely chopped
- A couple of chilli
or more to taste (either red or green); finely chopped
- A tablespoon (or
more to your liking) of cumin seeds
- Several cloves of
garlic (or a couple teaspoons of garlic powder); finely
chopped
- A sprig of Curry
Leaves; finely sliced
- A few pepper mill
grinds of Black Pepper (to taste)
- Salt to taste
- OPTIONAL (and very
Chinese): A handful of dried shrimp; soaked and then ground.
- SECRET: I add MSG
Method
- Soak the chickpeas
in plenty of excess water the night before.
- After overnight
soaking, blend the chickpeas.
How much to blend depends on your preference. I like to blend fine - this cooks better.
Or you can blend to two size (fine and coarse) and then combine, so that you have some texture to the patty.
- During the
blending, add the onions, chilli, and salt.
- Add water bit by
bit as you blend until your preferred consistency is
obtained.
Remember not to make it too runny as this will make it difficult to form the patties later.
- Remove from the
blender and then add the chopped chill and sliced Curry
leaves.
Mix well.
- To make the
patties, take a handful and toss it from hand to hand to
form a ball.
The tossing compacts the ball and forces the dough to bind together (removes cracks and air pockets).
Then use both hands held together to form a flat patty from the round ball.
- Gently put each
patty into hot oil to fry until golden brown (or darker as
you please - colour corresponds with crispiness).
Use a high smoke point oil such as peanut oil.
The frying temperature is a bit of worked out experience -
it should not be too hot such that the patty browns without the interior being full cooked and yet it should not be of such low heat as to result in oil infiltration of the patty to result in greasy vadai.
- Serve hot (watch out tongue!).
All my cooking (some without recipes) can be found here (click on each photo to go to that dish's page):
http://clemkuek.com/photoalbum/photo696.html
Video presentations can be found here:
30 October
2025
Created by Clem Kuek
