Ullundu vadai Morkozhumbu- Lentil dumplings in buttermilk gravy

I usually use vegetables mostly okra or rarely ash gourd for morkozhumbu until I saw in sudha's blog. She had used udid dal/lentil vadas for the morkozhumbu and this authentic south Indian dish which I had never heard of sounded so good to me. I decided to give it a try. As usual, I made the vadais in paniyaaram pan to avoid deep frying and yes it worked. The vadais were as good as deep fried ones , so no compromise in taste. There is a huge section of unknown (to me)tamil cuisines I still have to venture into, I felt after making this one.
We relished it with hot rice and beans curry.

Ingredients-
Vadais
Udid dal- 1cup
Green chillies- 1 cut
Curry leaves- 2-3 leaves chopped
pepper corns- 1tsp
Salt- 1tsp
Oil- 1tbsp

Morkozhumbu
Buttermilk- 2 cups
Coriander seeds-2tsp
Dried red chillies- 3
Grated coconut- 1tbsp
Cumin seeds- 1tsp
Asafoetida- 1tsp
Fenugreek seeds- 1tsp
Mustard seeds- 1tsp
Raw rice- 2tsp
Tuvar dal- 2tsp
Curry leaves- few

Method-
Vadais
Soak the dal for 2 to 3 hours. Then grind it to a smooth paste adding very little water. Add salt, Green chillies, peppercorns, curry leaves. Mix well.
Add few drops of oil in the paniyaaram pan. Then pour the batter in each cup. Allow it to cook well. Remove when they have turned brown in colour. Keep it aside.
Note- You can deep fry them too.

Morkozhumbu-
Soak rice and dal in water for around 30 minutes.
Roast red chillies, coriander seeds and cumin seeds for sometime. Add this in a mixer jar along with grated coconut and soaked rice dal mixture. Grind this to a smooth paste.
Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves. Add the buttermilk along with the ground paste. Stir well and keep on flame for 5 minutes.

How to proceed-
Add the vadais in the morkozhumbu 30 minutes before serving.
Serve with rice.