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1
Place the pigeon peas in a medium-size bowl.
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2
Fill the bowl halfway with water and rinse the peas by rubbing them between your fingertips.
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3
The water will become cloudy.
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4
Drain this water.
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5
Repeat three or four times, until the water remains relatively clear; drain.
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6
Now fill the bowl halfway with warm water and add the chiles to the peas.
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7
Allow the peas and chiles to soften by letting them sit at room temperature, covered, for at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.
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8
Drain the pigeon peas and chiles, transfer them to a food processor, and process to form a red-speckled, slightly gritty paste.
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9
Scrape this paste into a medium-size bowl.
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10
Fold in the yellow split peas, onion, cilantro, salt, and asafetida, forming a paste that looks like wet sand.
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11
Grease your palms with a little cooking oil or spray.
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12
Take a heaping tablespoon of the paste and shape it into a tight round ball.
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13
Press the ball between the palms of your hands to form a patty roughly 1 1/2 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick.
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14
Lay it on a plate or tray.
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15
Repeat with the remaining paste.
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16
You should end up with about 25 patties.
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17
Pour oil to a depth of 2 to 3 inches into a wok, Dutch oven, or medium-size saucepan.
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18
Heat the oil over medium heat until a candy or deep-fry thermometer inserted into the oil (without touching the pans bottom) registers 350F.
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19
(An alternative way to see if the oil is at the right temperature for deep-frying is to gently flick a drop of water over it.
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20
If the pearl-like drop skitters across the surface, the oil is ready.)
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21
Line a large plate or a cookie sheet with several layers of paper towels.
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22
Once the oil is ready, gently slide 8 patties into the pan (do not crowd the pan).
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23
Fry, turning them occasionally, until they are caramel-brown and crisp on both sides, about 5 minutes.
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24
Remove them with a slotted spoon and place them on the paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
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25
Repeat until all the patties are fried.
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26
You may need to adjust the heat to maintain the oils temperature at 350F.
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27
To make the sauce, whisk the yogurt, salt, and 1/4 cup water together in a medium-size bowl.
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28
Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat.
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29
Add the mustard seeds, cover the skillet, and wait until the seeds have stopped popping (not unlike popcorn), about 30 seconds.
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30
Immediately add the tomato, chiles, and cilantro.
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31
Cook, uncovered, until the tomato has broken down and formed a chunky sauce, 2 to 4 minutes.
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32
Stir this spicy sauce into the watered-down yogurt.
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33
Place 2 fritters on each individual serving plate, and cover each one with a heaping teaspoon of the tart-hot, mustard-spiked yogurt sauce.
