I had bought a huge bunch of Coriander /Cilantro leaves and was wondering how to use it optimally. I remembered the Maharashtrian dish Kothimbir Vadi meaning ‘Coriander Vadas’ in Marathi, which I used to relish at a Maharashtrian restaurant called ‘Aaswaad’ in Mumbai. Since it was in the vicinity of my work place, I was a regular, going there almost once a week to savor Maharashtrian delicacies. It was there that I took a liking to Kothimbir Vadi. But the recipe I learnt later from a Maharastrian friend is slightly different from the one I tasted in the restaurant in the sense that I rolled the dough and steamed it, instead of putting the batter in a tray and steaming it, and secondly I shallow fried it instead of deep frying it. Anyways the results were amazing. To add to the experience of relishing it, the rains cooperated. So there we were sitting by the balcony, watching the rains lash across and sipping ginger tea and munching on Kothimbir Vadi.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch Cilantro/ Coriander leaves
- 1 ½ cups Besan
- 2-3 green chilies
- 1 tsp red chili powder
- 1 pinch turmeric powder
- 1/4 teaspoon asafetida
- 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
- 3 tbsp oil
Method:
- Wash the coriander leaves thoroughly and chop them fine.
- In a bowl, add besan, chopped green chilies, and all the other ingredients and mix thoroughly
- Add some water if required and knead into stiff dough
- Divide the dough into two or three 2 inch thick rolls
- Place the rolls in a tray and steam it in a pressure cooker (without the whistle) for 30 minutes.
- After it cools, cut the rolls into thin slices.
- In a pan, heat some oil and place the slices on it and fry till both sides become crisp and brown.
- Serve hot with Coconut chutney or ketchup
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Serves: 3