Crunchy from the outside and soft from the inside, bara makes for a perfect breakfast or an evening snack for those days when you want to treat yourself to something simple-yet-flavourful
Bara/ wada/ wade/ wadai are a few aliases for our humble bara. Invented by the ancient Tamilians during 100 BCE – 300 C, this south-Indian savoury doughnut is made in many other parts of India. However, generally, it is not prepared in an Odia household. I have grown fond of making it ever since I got married into a Tamilian family and learnt to make a lot of dishes from my mother-in-law and grandmother-in-law. It is a super quick and easy recipe.
Bara is also a base for one of the most famous Odia street foods called dahi vada aloo dum. Baras are soaked into a mix of spicy yoghurt, accompanied with ghuguni, aloo dum and served in a leaf bowl. For some youngsters, it is a daily breakfast while heading towards their school or college, a quick and pocket-friendly food-stop.
Freshly fried hot baras are found in small snack shops all over Odisha in early evenings where a small gang of middle-aged men would be busy chit-chatting and simultaneously snacking on these delicious fried munchies while sipping tea on the side. Mostly combined with another traditional curry of Odisha called Ghuguni. Ghuguni is a must accompaniment with most of the Odia savoury street snacks for e.i singhara (samosas), vegetable cutlet, aloo chop, idli, puri. The list could go on and on. OK enough of talking. Let's get frying!
Prep time | 4.30hrs
Cooking time | 15-20 mins
Difficulty level | Beginner - Intermediate
Ingredients
Whole urad Dal 200 grams
Salt ½ tbsp
Asofodita 1/4th tsp
Ginger finely chopped ½ tbsp
Curry leaf 10 to 12 leaves, chopped
Soak the urad dal in water for 4 hours. Now add the dal into a mixie jar and add around 4 to 5 tablespoon of water and grind it. You can add more water, if needed. The batter needs to be very thick like toothpaste. Refer to the video to get clarity on the batter thickness. Once The desired consistency is achieved keep the batter aside for 30 minutes.
Once the batter is rested, add salt and asafoetida, Finely, add grated ginger and curry leaves.
Now mix all the ingredients well with the batter and keep stirring it with your hand to help with the aeration. Stir it for around 2 to 3 minutes continuously. You will soon notice that the batter is getting fluffy and light. To check if the aeration is done right, take a little bit of batter and drop it in a bowl of water.
If the batter floats, then it’s ready to be fried.
Take a deep kadai/ pan and pour enough oil for deep frying. Keep the flame on high. Keep a bowl of water on the side before making the baras.
Wet hands prevent the batter from sticking to your hand.
Making perfect baras can be a little tricky. Hence, follow the instructions carefully. But having said that, the baras do not need to have a hole at the centre and can be eaten without it as well. So just feel free to make the baras according to your comfort.
Step 1/ Check if the oil is hot enough for deep frying. Throwing in a little drop of batter into the oil and notice how to reacts to the batter. The oil temperature is ideal if it starts frying instantly and rises to the top. If the oil is hot then, first wet your hands.
Step 2/ Wet your hands and take a large spoonful of batter
Step 3/ While having the batter resting on your index fingers, make a large hole in the centre of the batter with the help of your thumb. Making a large hole helps in cooking the Bara faster while retaining its iconic shape.
Step 4/ Gently let the batter slide from your hand into the hot oil. Wet your hands every time before making a bara to avoid the stickiness of the batter
Step 5/ Fry the bara on both sides until it turns golden brown.
Wallah! Your doughnuts/ baras are ready to be served either with chutney or ghuguni or even ketchup. Just let your imagination shine.
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