VADA PAV

‘Vada Pav’ – is Maharashtra’s answer to the West’s fast food! It is actually ‘Bun & Batata (potato) Vada’. ‘Batata vada’ is the North Indian version of ‘Bonda’! There are specific joints in each city of Maharashtra which are famous for their vada-pav. My sons feel the ones available at Karjat railway station (midway between Mumbai and Pune) are the best!

Here’s my recipe for ‘Vada Pav’.

Makes 8 vadas

Ingredients
Pav (Bun) - 8

Besan (Gram flour) – nearly 1 cup

Dosa batter – 1 ½  tbsp (or  Rice flour – 1 tbsp & Baking soda – a pinch)

Red chilli powder – ½ tsp

Asafetida – a pinch

Salt to taste

For the filling -

Potatoes – 250 gms (3 medium sized ones)

Onion – 1-2 medium sized – sliced fine

Garlic – ½ tsp (finely chopped)

Green chilli – 2 – finely chopped

Ginger – ½” piece – finely chopped

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Urad dal – 1 tsp

Chana dal – 1 tsp

Asafetida – a pinch

Curry leaves – 10

Coriander leaves – chopped fine – 1 tbsp

Oil – 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Method

Filling

Boil the potatoes with turmeric powder and salt.

Peel and gently mash the potatoes.

Heat oil in a kadhai, add mustard seeds, urad dal and chana dal and a pinch of asafetida. When they splutter, add the sliced onion and garlic and fry on medium heat with a little salt for 2 minutes.

Add chopped ginger and green chilli and continue to fry till onions turn light brown.

Add a little turmeric powder, and curry leaves and fry for a minute.

Add 2-3 tbsps of water and cook till dry.

Add mashed potatoes and mix well.

Add chopped coriander leaves and mix well.

Make 8 oval shaped balls and flatten them.

Batter

Take besan in a vessel, add dosa batter, red chilli powder, salt, and asafetida. Add sufficient water to make a batter (without lumps) which is a bit thick.

Batata vadas
Heat oil in a kadhai.

Dip each oval flat potato tikki in the besan batter and carefully put it in the hot oil.

Keep the stove on medium heat and turn the vadas when the bottom portion has browned.

When evenly brown, drain off the oil and transfer the batata vadas onto a tissue paper.

Vada Pav
Slit each pav and toast on the tava, spreading butter on both sides.

Place one batata vada inside each pav and serve hot with ketchup and green chutney / dry garlic chutney.

Tips

If you use dosa batter along with besan, the coating of the vada will be soft and fluffy and will not absorb much oil unlike the vadas made using besan with rice flour and baking soda. So try to plan this dish when you have a little dosa batter at home!

If you are left with excess batter, you can make ‘bajji’ / pakodas.

© Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.