Rice Puri or Rice Vada are crispy as well as soft fried bread made with rice flour dough and a speciality from the coastal region of Maharashtra. This recipe is a simple version made with rice flour, water, some ground spices and oil.
Mix the spices and salt with the rice flour. Heat water in a pan till its begins to boil. Add the hot boiling water to the rice flour mixture.
With a spoon stir well. Cover with a lid and let this mixture become warm, for about 20 to 25 mins.
Add 1 teaspoon oil or ghee. Then begin to mix everything with your hands.
The mixture will be a bit hot or warm while kneading. Knead till smooth and even.
Apply a little oil on your palms while kneading.
If the dough looks dry and crumbly, then add a bit of more warm water and continue to knead.
Cover and let the dough rest for 25 to 30 minutes more or till it cools completely.
Make small or medium balls from the dough. Keep the balls covered with a lid or with a kitchen cotton napkin.
Frying rice poori
Keep oil for deep frying in a kadai or pan.
Then apply some oil in your hands or on the ball. Place the ball on a zip lock bag or plastic sheet.
With your fingers or palms, flatten the ball to a round size till you get the shape of a poori. The poori should not be thick nor thin. Apply more oil if required while patting the ball.
Gently remove the poori from the zip lock bag and slid it into hot oil. Make sure the oil is medium-hot while frying.
Add only one or two rice puri, depending on the size of your kadai. Wait for the rice puri to start getting puffed up.
Then gently press and nudge the puri, in circular motion, so that it puffs completely.
With a slotted spoon, turn over the puri and fry the other side. On this side, also you can press and nudge the puri, if it did not puff completely the first time.
Flip the rice puri once or twice more, till you see a pale golden color. Remove and drain them on paper towels to remove excess oil.
Serve Rice Puri or Rice Vada hot with any beans or legumes curry.