Vazhaipoo kola urundai is a vegetarian deep fried appetizer / side-dish that is made by using Vazhaipoo / Banana Blossom as the main ingredient. We add few other flavorful ingredients along with vazhaipoo, that makes this dish a burst of flavors. This dish is very addictive. You can’t stop with one! Everything is ground and made to small balls and deep fried. As simple as that.

I love the taste of vazhaipoo right from childhood. I have been lucky enough to have tasted the best of vazhaipoo recipes. My grandmother is a kola urundai expert. She makes the best kola urundai. I suddenly found interest in making kola urundai and I loved it. I totally enjoy the making process of vazhaipoo kola urundai. When we get to enjoy such a delicious dish, few hours of work really doesn’t matter rite. I made this for a weekend lunch. Had this as a side with some plain dal tadka and rice. Tasted divine!

During recent days, my husband is fond of Vazhaipoo kola urundai more than the traditional Mutton kola urundai. So I’m making this often. I like both, vazhaipoo and mutton versions. Do follow the simple steps and tips for making the perfect kola urundai. Tastes excellent as such or with some dal rice / rasam rice. This is a feast for vegetarians! Try making this dish and be amazed by the taste!

I include vazhaipoo in our diet as it is very healthy and all of us at home love the taste. My kids are fond of it as well. I’m sure you will love making this dish!

We get Vazhaipoo here in the US. But I should admit that it isn’t fresh as the one we get in India. The color of the petals is very dark in the first 3 or 4 layers. You can discard that and use the rest of the petals. Works perfect.

Check the below link for a detailed description on cleaning Vazhaipoo. Refer “How to clean Vazhaipoo / Banana Blossom” section in my Vazhaipoo Kuzhambu recipe for detailed explanation about the cleaning process. https://kayalscookbookstories.wordpress.com/2020/06/11/vazhaipoo-kuzhambu/

Important tips to make the perfect kola urundai

• After boiling the vazhaipoo petals, make sure to squeeze the excess water.
• The batter should be easy to hold and make firm balls. Do not add more water while grinding. Sprinkle it carefully.
• Add enough roasted gram powder (pottu kadalai powder). This helps in binding ingredients together.
• Refrigerate the balls before deep frying.
• Deep fry the balls in medium flame. Else the balls will absorb more oil and break. Also the inside part will taste raw.

Ingredients

• Vazhaipoo (Cleaned and Chopped) – 2 1/4 cups
• Grated coconut – 1 cup
• Pottukadalai / Roasted gram dal – 1/2 cup
• Curry leaves – 3 sprigs
• Ginger – 1 inch piece
• Garlic – 4
• Small onion – 6
• Khasa khasa / Poppy seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Sombhu / Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Dry red chillies – 4
• Coriander leaves – 5 stalks (Finely chopped)
• Salt – 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp
• Oil – For deep frying

Procedure

• Prepare all the ingredients and set aside.
• Clean and soak vaizhaipoo in water till use.
• Drain the water in a colander and chop it roughly.

• Cook the chopped vazhaipoo in a pan with 1/4 cup water + 1/2 tsp salt for 5 to 7 mins. Close the pan with a lid and cook in medium flame. Drain in a colander.
• Squeeze the excess water from the vazhaipoo in a bowl and set aside. Save this water and use it for sprinkling while grinding with the other ingredients.

• Grind the roasted gram dal to a fine powder.

• In a mixie, add in the dry red chillies, sombhu (fennel seeds) and poppy seeds and grind it first.

• Add in all the other ingredients and half the quantity of the roasted gram powder and grind it well.

• Next, add in the vazhaipoo in small batches and grind it well. Add few spoons of the squeezed water if you find the mixture isn’t grinding properly.
• If it is large mixie jar, you can add all the vazhaipoo at once and grind it.
• Transfer this mixture to a wide bowl.

• Add in the chopped coriander leaves and the rest of the roasted gram dal powder/ pottu kadalai powder. Mix it well and check for salt. Add very little salt if necessary.

• Make small balls. I made 17 balls for this quantity of vazhaipoo.
• Refrigerate the balls for 15 mins. Do not skip this step.
• Add oil in a wide vessel for deep frying.
• Once the oil is hot, add 3 balls at a time. Do not overcrowd the pan while deep frying.
• Reduce the flame to medium, and fry for 2 – 3 mins till nice and brown in color. The texture should be crispy outside and soft inside.

• Drain excess oil and keep it in a paper towel.
• Repeat the same process for the rest of the balls.

• Serve hot!

IMPORTANT NOTE : YOU CAN’T STOP WITH ONE! SO DELICIOUS!

Notes

• Add salt cautiously, as there is a chance of adding more salt to the grounded vazhaipoo dough. So taste the dough and add salt if required.
• Vazhaipoo I have used in this recipe is bought here in the US and hence the dark color. So you can discard the first 3 layers and then use the rest of the florets. Tastes perfect.
• At Coimbatore, Vazhaipoo would be very fresh and mild yellowish pink in color. I recommend using fresh vazhaipoo / banana blossom if it is available in your place.
• Follow the small tips mentioned in the recipe for the perfect kola urundai.
• Add green chillies instead of dry red chillies for a different taste.
• Do not skip adding more curry leaves. Tastes great when more curry leaves are added.
• Also do not add too much of pottu kadalai powder to the dough, then it will dominate over the vazhaipoo.