BELLAM GARELU

INGREDIENTS:

whole urad dal (black gram dal, minappappu) - 1cup

salt
oil -  for deep frying
 grated jaggery - 1cup( add water, cook to prepare a syrup that is sticky on touch)
water - 1&1/2 cups


METHOD:

1.  Soak whole black gram dal in water for 2 hours.


2.  Strain the water, and grind the dal to a paste sprinkling little water and salt. Use small portions of dal to grind batch wise as its easier to grind into a soft paste. Beat till fluffy.
3.  Heat water, add the jaggery and let it melt and form a syrup which is sticky to touch. While the jaggery is forming a syrup, deep fry the vadas.
4.  Take a deep frying vessel, add enough oil and heat till piping hot.
5.  Wet your hands with water, take a lemon-sized ball of batter and flatten it into a vada on a greased sheet or banana leaf. Make a hole in the centre of the vada so that it cooks evenly all over
6.  Slowly drop the vada into the hot oil carefully and fry it on both sides on medium heat to a golden brown color. Deep fry 4-5 vadas per batch depending on the size of the vessel.
7.  Immediately dip these fried vadas into the jaggery syrup. Let them sit in this syrup till the next batch of vadas are deep-fried. Remove them onto a serving plate and drop the next batch of vadas into the syrup.
8.  Drizzle some left over syrup over vadas before serving and serve hot while the crust is still crisp.

You can even add cardamom powder if you like the flavour.......................