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A white plate with dahi vada, also known as dahi bhalla, topped with yogurt, green chutney, red chili powder, and fresh cilantro, with a spoon resting on the side. The plate is on a white wooden surface.
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Soft Dahi Baray

Author Sarah Mir

Ingredients

Yogurt Mix

  • Yogurt 2 pounds or about 1 ½ times a 750g yogurt carton
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 ½ tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 to 1 ½ tsp cumin powder

Baras or Fried Lentil Dumplings

  • 1 cup ma’ash/urad daal – the white kind covered with water and soaked overnight (150g)
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon cumin powder
  • ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ inch piece ginger (peeled, roughly chopped)

Garnish

  • Chaat Masala Powder
  • Red Chilli Powder
  • Tamarind Chutney
  • Finely Chopped Cilantro
  • Coriander/Mint Chutney

Instructions

For the yogurt mix

  • Combine the yogurt, sugar and spices along with ½ cup of water and whisk. I suggest starting with half the amount of chilli powder and cumin powder unless like me you are a fan.
  • Taste and check seasoning. Put it in the fridge while you work on the dumplings.

For the dumplings

  • Drain the maash ki Daal making sure to reserve about ⅓ cup of soaking liquid.
  • Grind all the baray ingredients in a blender along with ¼ cup of the daal water. Only add more if absolutely necessary. You want a very thick paste.
  • Transfer the mixture to a bowl
  • For softer Dahi Baray: Whisk energetically to create volume in the batter, about 4-5 minutes with a large whisk. 2 minutes with an electric mixer works.
  • Heat a skillet and add 2 inches of oil and put on medium-high heat for the oil to heat through.
  • Meanwhile get another pan or bowl – at least 10 inches in diameter and fill it ⅔ of the way with water. Add a pinch of salt in the water
  • Now get a tray or platter and line it with paper towels to help drain the grease from the dumplings.
  • Once the oil heats up then gently place a dollop of the batter into the hot oil.
  • After a minute and a half the dumpling will turn a lovely golden color at which point you should turn them over and cook for another minute and a half.
  • Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
  • Put the dumplings in the water bath for a few minutes

To Assemble

  • Pour a layer of yogurt mix into your dish of choice.
  • Remove the dumplings from the water one by one, gently squeezing them beneath your palms to drain the excess water and then lay them out in rows on top of the yogurt until your dish is filled.
  • Top with enough of the yogurt to adequately cover the dumplings and refrigerate.
  • Leave it for atleast an hour so the flavours soak through the dumplings.
  • Top with your garnishes of choice

Notes

If there is too much water in the maash ki daal mix the baray will be mushy which is why I start with a smaller amount. However, if you do accidentally put too much liquid then you can always fix your dahi baray by adding a little besan to the batter.
Variations: to amp up the spice you can add some green chilies into the dahi baray or even put a baghaar of curry leaves, cumin, and dried red chilies over top.