SANDIGE HULI

Sandige Huli / Unde Huli is a traditional recipe from Karnataka, it is prepared especially during marriages / threading ceremony. We don’t use and vegetables in this huli but instead we use the dal/lentils sandige.

There are two methods of preparing Sandige Huli / Unde Huli, one is by steam cooking the sandige and the other is by deep frying the sandige. Today I am showing the second version of deep frying the sandige. These deep-fried sandige's are crispy from outside and soft inside and once they are coated with delicious huli they taste heavenly. This protein-rich mouthwatering dish is served with rice & some ghee.

So let's see how this delicious dish is prepared...

Ingredients

For Sandige

Chana Dal - ½ Cup

Toor Dal - ½ Cup

Fresh coconut – ½ cup

Ginger – 1 inch

Curry Leaves – 3 springs

Green Chillies - 5

Red Chillies – 4

Coriander leaves – 1/8 Cup

Salt to taste

Oil to deep-fry

For Huli

Soaked dal’s from Sandige – ¼ Cup

Sandige Masala (Prepared while making sandige) – 1/8 Cup

Oil – ¼ Tsp

Cumin Seeds – 1 Tbsp

Coriander Seeds – 1 Tbsp

Red Chillies –6 to 8

Fresh coconut – 1/3 Cup

Tamarind extract – ¼ Cup

Jaggery – 1 Tbsp

Turmeric powder – ¼ Tsp

Asafetida – ¼ Tsp

Salt to taste

For Tempring

Oil – 2 Tsp

Mustard Seeds – 1 Tsp

Red Chilli – 1 (broken)

Method

For making Sandige

Step 1

Wash and Soak - chana dal & toor dal for 3-4 hours. Drain water from soaked dals, Keep aside ¼ Cup of soaked dal for huli. Grind soaked dals with coconut, ginger, green chillies, red chillies, curry leaves, coriander leaves, and salt to taste. Do not add any water coarse grind it – Sandige Masala is ready.

Keep 1/8 Cup of prepared sandige masala aside for huli.

Step 2

Take the prepared sandige masala in a bowl, mix well. Heat oil in a pan for deep-frying sandige. Take about 1-2 Tbsp of this, mixture make round ball and flatten it.

Step 3

Drop a small ball of the sandige mix to oil to check if the oil is hot. Make sure the oil is not too hot, If the dough ball raises above the oil in a couple of seconds, the oil is hot enough to drop in the sandige’s, one by one. Cook it on a medium heat by flipping sandiges until golden brown on both the sides. Drain it on a paper towel & repeat the procedure with the remaining Sandige’s.

For making Huli

Step 1

Ina small pan add oil, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, & red chillies. Roast them till they change color & becomes aromatic. Add the roasted masala in a blender along with coconut, soaked dals & sandige masala kept aside. Add water as required and grind to make a nice paste.

Step 2

Transfer the ground masala in a pan keep it on medium heat, add water to adjust the consistency (I have added 2 cups of water).

Add tamarind extract, jaggery, turmeric powder, asafetida, and salt. Mix well.

Step 3

Allow it to boil for 4-5 mins on medium heat, stir occasionally. The dals in it might make the huli thick add water to adjust the consistency.

Tempering

Heat oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds, red chillies.

Assembling

Add prepared tempering & sandige to huli and mix well. Let it come to a boil and sandige coat well in huli. Switch off the flame.

Sandige huli is ready to serve with hot rice.

Note

Make sure you don’t grind sandige masala to paste. You should be able to see a few whole lentils as it is. That is the texture we want for crispy Sandige.

At a time you can add 3-6 Sandiges depending on the size of your pan, do not overcrowd them.

Adjust the consistency of huli by adding water as required. The lentils in huli tend to make it thick, as the huli starts to boil.

Adjust the spiciness according to your preference, I have used 8 red chillies for huli as I make huli little chatpata than sandige. Once the sandige is coated in this huli it tastes delicious.