Starter:Garlic Flavoured Urad Bonda with Pearl Onion.

"Starter : Garlic Flavoured Urad Bonda stuffed with single Red Pearl Onion" ... When it is party time there's got to be some awesome starters to begin the non stop chatting sessions with ... Here is one of my own recipe for starter dish that is infused with garlic flavour and the crunch of urad dal coating to a soft pearl onion within ... each bite tastes simply heavenly with a chilled drink .... Yummilicious .... 

** I have always loved preparing deep fried dishes, especially bondas, golibajos, tikki, cutlets as starters. I am always zapped at the name starter coz. starter means a meal that is started with, but in my home these starter continue to be relished through the meal and even after that. A little bit tedious to make what with having to peel off those small sized onions to be stuffed whole into each bonda, though rest of the procedure is a breeze work. Well you can prepare the bondas and keep them in air tight containers and deep fry them just before serving too. This on is my own invention and is always a hit in my home specially during winter season when we either have it for New Year party or Republic Day Party. So do try them out and enjoy your party with your family and friends.

** Here is my simple recipe for "Starter : Garlic Flavoured Urad Bonda stuffed with single Red Pearl Onion" ... My Style .... Please check out the collage of step by step pictures posted for proper understanding of the procedure .... 

** Wash and soak 1 cup Urad Dal/Black gram split dal without skin for 2 hrs. Drain off the water, wash a few times and leave it aside on a colander for at least 30 minutes for the water to get drained off well. The urad dal should be completely dry or else it will become mushy while grinding.

** Peel off the outer skin of Single whole Red Pearl Onions and keep them ready aside. Say about 20-25. These onions are very small in size as shown in the accompanied picture in the collage and are also known as Madras Sambar Onions as they are usually added on whole to sambar that is served with Idlies in southern parts of India. 

** Make a coarse paste of 2-3 green chillies (hirwi mirchi/tarni mirsanga), ½ cup of coriander leaves (kothimbir/dhania), ½ cup of green spring garlic (losun/loshney jada), ½ tsp of jeera (cumin seeds), pinch of ovam (ajwain), ½ tsp hing powder (asafoetida), 8-10 curry leaves (karbevu/kadipatta), ½ tsp of amchur powder (dried mango) and salt to taste (namak swad anusar).

** Put the above ingredients into a mixer grinder and grind in pulse mode till well crushed to a coarse paste. Do see to it that all the ingredients are well crushed, in order to do that, mix the ingredients a few times and then run the pulse mode for the same. Do not add any water while grinding. Remove and put it in a wide stainless steel bowl.

** Now add in the drained urad dal into the mixer grinder and grind it to a semi smooth paste. Keep mixing in between and use water sparingly. You should just sprinkle water in between and not add in much or the batter will turn out runny and will not hold the onion well when binding. So be very careful while grinding. Remove and add this to the bowl of spice and mix well and keep ready.

** To form the balls/bondas for frying : Take some prepared urad dal spiced mixture paste on hand and flatten it out, keep one peeled pearl onion in the center and roll on the paste on all sides making it into a round ball. Wet hands if necessary so that the paste does not stick to your hands. However see that the water does not get added to the paste and it become runny.

** The process should be carried out carefully seeing to it that the batter is covered on all sides of the onion. Repeat the same process with all the peeled onions and keep them ready on a plate to be fried. This process should be completed before starting to fry the bondas. You can also place these balls/bondas in a air tight container in fridge for sometime and then fry them hot and serve too.

** For Deep Frying of the Bondas : Heat plenty oil in a thick bottomed kadai/pan to smoking hot, lower the heat and wait for few minutes. Add a small ball of batter into the oil, if it reaches the bottom sizzles and comes up without burning it means the heat of oil is of correct temperature and you oil is ready for frying. If it sink and does not rise, heat the oil a bit and if gets burnt wait for a few minutes for the oil to reach right temperature.

** Now add in the Bonda’s one by one gently into the oil. You can add 8-10 Bonda’s at a time depending upon the size of the kadai/pan and the amount of oil added. Keep the heat on medium and deep fry the Bonda’s in hot oil till golden brown. Remove the done bondas with an ringed spatula which helps in draining back the oil into the kadai. Place the done bondas on an absorbent paper for excess oil to get drained. Prepare the remaining bondas in similar way till all are done.

**  "Starter : Garlic Flavoured Urad Bonda stuffed with single Red Pearl Onion" is done and are ready to be served. Serve these bondas hot as starters with any chutney of your choice. You can also serve them with Ketchup/ Tomato Imli Dip/ Mint Mayo Dip or any other chutney powder too. This starter is a hit in my home with my family and friends and there is always a demand for more. Do try it out this New Year and have a lovely party time with your family and friends.

** Note : This post has been re-edited for the sake of uniformity in blogging of recipes only. The recipe remains the same and I have not made any changes whatsoever. Do try out various dishes from the Blog and give me a feed back if possible. It is always a pleasure to mails or comments when you try out the dishes and it wants me to make effort in posting that many more.