By: Toshita Sahni
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Kothimbir Vadi is a beloved Maharashtrian snack featuring coriander leaves (kothimbir) and besan. This flavourful fried delicacy can be easily made at home.
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The besan-based dough is first steamed and later fried to get crisp pieces known as vadis. Read our step-by-step recipe for this Maharashtrian dish here:
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2 cups coriander leaves, chopped
1 cup besan
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tbsp rava
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tbsp white sesame seeds
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4-5 green chillies
4-5 garlic cloves
1-inch ginger
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
Oil for frying
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Grind the ginger, garlic, green chillies, sugar and lemon juice to make a coarse paste. Set aside.
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In a mixing bowl, add the besan, rava, rice flour, turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt. Add ½ tbsp sesame seeds and combine all ingredients.
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Mix in the chopped coriander leaves and the paste prepared earlier to start forming a dough. Add a little water only if necessary - we don't want a sticky dough.
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Grease a thali/steaming tray with oil and press the kneaded dough onto it evenly in the form of a log or rectangular shape.
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Steam the dough for 15-20 minutes in a steamer or pressure cooker without the pressure weight. Once cooked through, slice it into squares or diamond shapes.
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Allow the pieces to cool for some time. Later, shallow-fry or deep-fry them until crisp. Top the vadis with the remaining white sesame seeds.
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Kothimbir vadi can be served with different chutneys, including green (hari) chutney, coconut chutney, dry garlic (lehsun) chutney, etc.
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To learn how to make Maharashtrian Thalipeeth
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