In a bowl add channa dal and soak in water for at least 2 hours. After soaking the dal drain the excess water and add the soaked channa dal to a blender.

Along with the channa dal add dry red chilli and fennel seeds. Now coarsely pulse everything once.

Clean the banana flowers and chop roughly. Add the chopped banana flowers to the blender along with the pulsed channa dal. once again pulse everything coarsely. Make sure not to blend to a fine paste.

Blend everything into a coarse mixture. I usually keep 1 or 2 tbsp of soaked channa dal without adding it to the blender and then as a whole while shaping the vada. This gives a beautiful texture to the vadai.

Now transfer everything to a mixing bowl. Also, add finely chopped onions, coriander leaves curry leaves, rice flour, and the required salt.

Combine everything and start shaping the vadai. If you feel the mixture is loose and not able to shape properly add another tbsp of rice flour. Shape the vadai and keep it in the freezer for 10 mins. This helps in keeping the vadai firm without breaking as you fry.

Heat a pan with oil for deep frying. I usually prefer ground oil for frying. You can also use sunflower oil or coconut oil. Once the oil is hot drop the shaped vadai. Make sure not to overcrowd the pan while frying.

Fry the vadai in medium flame for 3-4 mins on both sides. Once the vadai is crispy, golden, and cooked on all sides. Remove the vadai from the pan. Remove the excess oil with paper towels and serve hot.