It's always good to mend our eating regime to homemade food whether it's the main meals or the snacks. Yes, snacks as well and it can't get better if they are healthy, easily made and taste great. And after knowing this snack, named Onion Fryums from Karnataka, you would immediately feel a strange but warm resemblance with the Moong dal and Chana dal Baris of North Indian households. These Onion Fryums or Sendige also go through the process of sun-drying the Fryums just like Baris. The overnight fermented rice batter added to thicken the onions and a few spices cooked in water make the Onion Fryums a whole new bundle of taste and crunchy delight.
The Culture Of Sendige
Sendige which is a sun-dried snack is common throughout South India, mainly Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. It is also called Vadagam in Tamil. The snack is eaten as an accompaniment to the main meal or as an evening snack. Sendige is to Karnataka as Baris are to North and Central India. The best part of both these snacks is that they can be stored throughout the year and deep fried when serving.
Sendige is conventionally prepared by making a gruel or a wet mixture based on any kind of cereal and spiced with asafoetida, chilli paste and salt. This mixture is then placed in small portions on a plastic sheet or a piece of cloth and dried under the sun for a couple of days. The kinds of Sendige include Aralu Sendige made of popped rice and ash gourd and Avalakki Sendige made of pounded rice. The Onion Fryums also called Vengaya Vathal are a popular snack item in Karnataka.
Preparation: 4 days
Cooking: 10 minutes
Servings: 150 Fryums
Ingredients:
- ½ cup rice
- 3 ½ cups of water
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup red chilli powder
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- ¾ cup chopped onions
Method:
- Soak the washed rice overnight and grind it into a fine paste.
- Allow it to ferment overnight.
- In a pan, pour water and heat it, add cumin seeds, salt, red chilli powder, and sesame seeds and bring it to a boil. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.
- Then add chopped onions and cook for 1 minute.
- Then add the fermented rice paste and keep stirring it with other ingredients at a low flame.
- Keep stirring until the whole mixture combines well and thickens.
- Switch off the flame and let it cool.
- Place small and equal-sized portions of this batter on a piece of cloth or plastic sheet.
- Maintain a little gap between each portion while placing them on the cloth.
- Allow them to dry in the sun for 2 days.
- Once it dries, sprinkle little water on the back side of the cloth to just be able to remove the dried fryums which tend to stick to the surface on which they are kept.
- Then place these peeled fryums on a plate and let it dry for 2 more days.
- After they have dried perfectly, deep fry them in hot oil and take them out and serve with tea.
These Onion Fryums have an absolutely crispy and slightly spicy taste, making them a great option for replacing the packaged chips and snacks filling up the pantry and harming one's health. Eat them with evening tea.