Vada Pao is a popular Indian street food made with spiced potato fritters coated in a gram flour batter, deep-fried until crisp, and served inside lightly toasted bread rolls with green chutney and homemade garlic peanut coconut chutney. Serve with fried green chillies for an authentic snack.
- Serves: 6 People
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cooking: 30 minutes
- Difficulties: supereasy
Ingredients
For Cooking
- 6 medium Potatoes, boiled, peeled and lightly mashed
- 3 tablespoons Oil for potato mixture
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 10 leaves Curry leaves
- 2 whole Green chillies, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon Fresh ginger, grated
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 0.25 teaspoon Asafoetida (hing)
- 1 teaspoon Salt, or to taste
- 1 small Lemon, juiced
- 2 cups Gram flour (besan)
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
- 0.5 teaspoon Turmeric powder for batter
- 2 tablespoons Cornflour
- 1 teaspoon Salt for batter, or to taste
- 1 cup Water, as needed for batter
- 2 tablespoons Oil for garlic chutney
- 12 cloves Garlic
- 0.5 cup Roasted peanuts
- 0.5 cup Desiccated coconut
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt for chutney, or to taste
- 8 whole Pav bread rolls
- 8 whole Green chillies for frying
- 1 cup Green chutney
- 500 millilitres Oil for deep frying
For Dressing
Nutritional Information
-
Calories
445 kcal -
Fat
20 g -
Carbohydrates
57 g -
Protein
11 g -
Fiber
7 g -
Sugar
4 g -
Sodium
620 mg
Procedure
-
10 minutesMark As Complete
Prepare the Potato Filling
Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Once they begin to crackle, stir in the curry leaves, chopped green chillies, and grated ginger. Cook briefly until fragrant before adding the mashed potatoes, mixing well as you continue to gently mash them.
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5 minutesMark As Complete
Season the Filling
Add the salt, turmeric powder, and asafoetida to the potatoes and stir until evenly combined. Finish with the fresh lemon juice and mix thoroughly so the filling becomes tangy and well seasoned. Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool completely.
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5 minutesMark As Complete
Prepare the Batter
Combine the gram flour, Kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric powder, cornflour, and salt in a mixing bowl. Gradually whisk in water until you have a smooth, lump-free batter that is thick enough to coat each potato ball evenly.
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10 minutesMark As Complete
Make the Garlic Chutney
Heat the oil and lightly roast the garlic cloves until golden. Add the coriander powder, chilli powder, salt, roasted peanuts, and desiccated coconut, then stir for another minute. Allow the mixture to cool before pulsing it in a grinder until it forms a coarse, dry chutney.
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5 minutesMark As Complete
Shape the Potato Balls
Divide the cooled potato mixture into equal portions and roll them into compact balls. Gently flatten each one slightly so they cook evenly and are easier to fit inside the pav after frying.
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10 minutesMark As Complete
Fry the Chillies and Vadas
Heat enough oil for deep frying over medium heat. Fry the whole green chillies until blistered and set them aside. Dip each potato patty into the prepared batter, coat completely, and fry for about 4 to 5 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels.
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5 minutesMark As Complete
Assemble the Vada Pao
Lightly toast the pav with a little oil until warm and lightly crisp. Spread green chutney inside each pav, sprinkle with the garlic chutney, add a hot potato fritter, and serve immediately with the fried green chillies on the side.
