Radhaballabhi

Ingredients

• 300 g plain flour (maida)
• 200 g urad dal (biuli dal)
• 35 g ginger
• 10 g green chillies
• 8 g fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp nigella seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida
• 30 g sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp salt
• 20 ml vegetable oil for the dough
• 20 ml vegetable oil for the filling
• 75 ml water, approximately
• 800 ml vegetable oil for deep frying

Before you cook

• Soak the urad dal in plenty of cold water overnight, then drain it thoroughly.
• Grind the drained dal with 60 ml water to a coarse paste, stopping before it turns fluffy.
• Grind the fennel seeds to a fine powder.
• Grind the ginger and green chillies with 1/2 tsp salt to a smooth paste.

Steps

1. Rub 20 ml oil, 1 tsp salt, 12 g of the sugar, 1 tsp of the ground fennel and 15 g of the ginger-chilli paste into the flour with your fingertips.
2. Mix in 130 g of the ground dal paste.
3. Add the water a little at a time and knead for five minutes to a soft, smooth dough.
4. Cover the dough tightly and rest it for thirty minutes.
5. Heat 20 ml oil in a kadai and temper it on low heat with the nigella seeds and asafoetida.
6. Add the rest of the ginger-chilli paste and fry for one minute.
7. Stir in the remaining ground fennel, 1 tsp salt and the rest of the sugar, and fry for two minutes until the sugar just caramelises.
8. Add the remaining dal paste and stir on low heat for twelve to fifteen minutes, scraping the sides, until it comes together as a dry crumbly lump.
9. Spread the filling on a plate and let it cool completely.
10. Divide the dough into twelve balls and the filling into twelve portions.
11. Flatten a dough ball in your palm, cup the filling inside, pinch the edges shut and roll it smooth again.
12. Smear each filled ball with a little oil and set them aside.
13. Heat the frying oil to 200C in a deep kadai.
14. Roll one ball at a time into a 12 cm disc with a light hand so the filling stays inside.
15. Slide the disc into the oil and press it gently under the surface with a slotted spoon until it balloons, about twenty seconds.
16. Flip it and fry for twenty seconds more, keeping the colour pale straw rather than brown.
17. Lift it into a colander so the steam escapes and the crust stays crisp.
18. Fry the rest the same way and serve warm with alur dom.