Sabudana Vada (Maharashtrian Style) by DK on Oct 12, 2012
Just like any new bride, the first few months saw me frantic in the kitchen, cooking up a storm. Though I knew basic cooking (thanks to a judicious and proactive mom), I was not one of those who loved cooking or even interested in knowing more about it. My passions were all over and everywhere but here. But given that I had to do it, I thought I might as well do a good job out of it and enjoy I sure did. It helps a great deal when the person you are cooking for takes extreme interest in eating up all that you made and in providing valuable feedback aimed at betterment.
Snacks were a highlight every day (with the weather at that place being cloudy at least 350 days a year) and among the myriad ones I tried, these made their appearance on and off. About 90% of the Maharashtrian recipes I know is courtesy my mom who meticulously jotted them down in her recipe diary during our stay in the North. Like I said before (see my Batata Poha and Kanda Poha post), I started loving few dishes without knowing where they are from. These vadas follow the same norm. Extremely popular during the Navartri (Dussera) festival time among the Maharashtrians, these can also be enjoyed during the rest of the year.
- Cook time:
- Prep time:
- Serves: 5 people
- Yields: Makes around 20-25 Vadas depending on size and thickness
Ingredients
- 1 cup (abt 170 grams/6 oz) Sabudana (Sago pearls), see Tips
- 2 cups (abt 2 large) Potatoes, boiled and mashed
- 1/2 cup Peanuts
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 2-3 Green chillies, or per taste, thinly sliced
- Pinch of Sugar
- 1 tsp Lemon juice, or as per taste
- Salt to taste, see Tips
- Few sprigs of Cilantro to garnish
- 2-3 tsp Rice flour, for dusting (optional) - See Tips
Tips
1. Sabudana : Depending upon the size and quality, the prep also changes. The smaller varieties need only around 15-20 minutes of soaking, while the larger kind needs soaking for 5-6 hours (or preferably overnight). Strictly, the quality also has a huge role in the soaking. The best quality requires just a sprinkling of water to make it soft and spongy. With trial, you would have to find out under what category your Sago pearls fall under. I have used large pearls for this recipe.
2. Salt: If preparing this recipe for Fasting (Vrat), use Rock Salt (Sendha Namak) instead of regular salt.
3. Rice flour: Its totally optional which I use for dusting and also to provide crispiness to the Vadas. But if you are preparing this for the Dussera Fasting, then I would suggest using Rajgira Atta ( Amaranth flour) or Singhara ka Atta (Water Chestnut Flour) or a combination of both to help not only in the binding but also to provide extra flavor. You won't need much for the binding and this recipe works without any flour too.
2. Salt: If preparing this recipe for Fasting (Vrat), use Rock Salt (Sendha Namak) instead of regular salt.
3. Rice flour: Its totally optional which I use for dusting and also to provide crispiness to the Vadas. But if you are preparing this for the Dussera Fasting, then I would suggest using Rajgira Atta ( Amaranth flour) or Singhara ka Atta (Water Chestnut Flour) or a combination of both to help not only in the binding but also to provide extra flavor. You won't need much for the binding and this recipe works without any flour too.
Method
1.
Wash the sabudana well and then soak it overnight with just enough water to cover it. You will find that the water has been absorbed by the sago and it will look plumped up. Refer Tip1 for details on the type of Sago to use.
2.
When you press the pearls with your fingertips it should get mushed up.
3.
Now drain the sago well - at least 15-20 minutes. Make sure there is no water in them before using in the recipe.
4.
While that's draining, dry roast the peanuts until browned
5.
and coarsely chop them. You can grind it into a powder but the coarseness provides a wonderful texture along with a delightful crunch to the vadas.
6.
Now mix all the ingredients in a large bowl (except the flour)
7.
and mix until combined. You will see (if you took care to drain out water from both sago and boiled potatoes) that it really doesnt need binding to shape into vadas. But you can add few tsp of suggested flours (see Tip 3) for extra flavor (and binding if you think you need it).
8.
I dusted by hands with little rice flour and shaped them into medium sized patties.
9.
Repeat for all of them. You can refrigerate this mixture at this point which I personally think helps in avoiding retention of oil (which sabudana wadas are notoriously famous for!)
10.
Heat oil for deep frying. Make sure to keep the temperature at 350F to 375F for making the crispy wadas without oil retention.
11.
Drop the Wadas to the oil, 2-3 per session, or as little (or as many) your vessel can hold. But make sure to adjust the heat accordingly.
12.
Turn on the other side for uniform browning.
13.
Remove and place it on paper towels.
Serve hot with any accompaniment of your choice. The best wadas are those that taste crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. This is perfect for monsoons, evening snacks or any time throughout the year and not just during fasting days :)
Filed Under these categories
- 291 Dairy Free
- 99 Dasara
- 447 Gluten Free
- 55 Indian Snacks
- 705 Kid Friendly
- 123 Navaratri Recipes
- 8 Navratri Fasting Recipes
- 292 Snacks
- 499 Vegan Recipes
Recipe Reference
mom's kitchen notes
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1 Member Reviews
By Soumya on Dec 22, 2013
Thanks for sharing the recipe. have tried it out and it came out awesome :)
Since I had so much sabudana (Soaked), I have mixed 2 cups of sabudana to 1 cup of smashed potato. And as i dint have Cilantro present at home, have used coriander leaves instead.
35 Comments
By varswar on Jan 26, 2015
just made it ! was awesome !! thankyou !!
By sharmishtha on Jan 6, 2015
I am just newly married.My husband loves sabudana vada very much. I vl just try today. I found the recipe very :) interesting
By Srinivasa on Sep 30, 2014
It's really good recipe. just now me n my wife made sabudana Vada. it came excellent m crispy too. :lol: :lol:
By syed on Sep 28, 2014
it is super in india when i came here and ate but present i am in UK i did'nt know much about it as i was born in UK BUT I LOVE IT WHEN I CAME TO INDAI :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D
By khan on Jul 15, 2014
this is nyc recipe... but i want it more crispy.. plz tell me how to make it crispy.. and also it sokes oil too much :evil: :evil: :evil:
By elina on Jun 25, 2014
perfect recipe. . .explicit in all respect.
By Sabudana Vada from Maharashtra | MySpicyKitchen on Apr 15, 2014
[...] key perfect sabudana vada is the quality of the sabudana and how long it is soaked. Chef in You has good tips/notes on [...]
By Sanjoy on Mar 10, 2014
Am a Bengali who picked up a fetish for this Maharashtrian snack during my regular work visits to Mumbai. Most standard restaurants in the city provide good quality vadas that I have as an evening snack with my cutting chai whenever I am at Mumbai. Thanks to this recipe online, I can teach my family how to make a great snack from the humble sago( in Bengal, we do not hold this cereal in high esteem) when back at Kolkata.
By lavanya on Dec 23, 2013
awsum....sure m gonna try it ....actually i love sabudana .....so it proved a marvelous recipe for me...
thanks for this
By naseer kp on Nov 1, 2013
nice ..... taste.... :wink:
By sharmila on Oct 27, 2013
Tried the recipe... It was just awesome... Everyone at home loved it... :)
By Sush on Oct 18, 2013
Tried it. My family loved it. Didn't need the rice flour. The vadas came out crispy and nice.
By Priyanka on Oct 10, 2013
:-P I m going to try these tomorrow for sure! Happy navratra guys!
By Nupur on Oct 1, 2013
I have had these Vadas first time, just last week itself... Loved them so much, I just wish they were not so fatty :(
By Diksha on Sep 20, 2013
Rajgira Atta ( Amaranth flour)where do you get this in banaglore?
By Diksha on Sep 20, 2013
Rajgira Atta ( Amaranth flour) where do we get this?
By roamalicious.com – roaming the world, finding delicious food along the way – Indian Cuisine: Dishes You Can’t Miss Out On this Year! on Sep 12, 2013
[...] is a traditional deep-fried snack from the Maharashtra, India. It is a kind of crunchy dumpling that simply melts in the mouth, leaving the stomach full [...]
By Usha Sardar on Jul 18, 2013
i tried d receipe at hme..& 2 my wnder evr1 likd it..thnks fr the receipe..... :-P
By Archana on May 19, 2013
I tried them this weekend for Saturday's brunch at my friend's place. This recipe turned out to be a big hit. I made to modifications to it. 1) Added soy flour as protein source 2) Shallow fried them on a non-stick skillet. The taste was just as wonderful as it would have been if it were deep fried or better because the vadas did not soak up oil. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I am making it again for a bigger gathering.
By Vanshika on May 19, 2013
Hey i have a problem. I live in u.s.virgin islands & here we dont get rice flour or any of the flours mentioned in the recipe. Is it ok if i use corn starch or maida for dusting. Thank you!!
By Archana on May 15, 2013
I like your recipe. I'm going to try it but with a slight modification. I will try shallow frying them, will post after my experiment.
By Venkatesh Iyer on May 12, 2013
So far I have been eating sabudanavadas bought from the shop. But after I gave your receipe to my wife, I feel I had the best vada in whole of my life. Many thanks.
By rashmi on Apr 7, 2013
:wink: hi....thank q.... for giving this reciepe.....now im gonna try..this..... :-P yummy.....
By Preeti Kolekar on Mar 16, 2013
I just love it!!!!.....pl share recipe if accompanying chutney!!
By Ishi on Feb 22, 2013
Alternatively raw potato can be used. It will be less oily than boiled one.
By teena on Jan 3, 2013
:-P good sabudana vada but it is so oily can we shallow fry the vada
By Latha on Oct 16, 2012
Mouth watering....yummm :)
By Latha on Oct 16, 2012
Mouth waiting...yummm.. :)
By Venera@Veggykitchen.com on Oct 14, 2012
I've never heard about Sago pearls before. I wonder what it taste like.
By Poornima on Oct 14, 2012
I so love sabudana vadas, this is so tempting! Unfortunately mine always soaks a lot of oil so I just avoid making them. Love the crisp golden color on these.
By Charul @ Tadka Masala on Oct 13, 2012
Love these! And the fact that I am not that great fan of sabudana khichdi, this is my fav thing in Navratri!
By CurryLeaf on Oct 13, 2012
:-P :-P :-P .A must try. Hve already tried your previous fritters post.
By Divya on Oct 12, 2012
How long does one refrigerate the patties before frying?
I am always scared of sabuna vada as they "kudichufy" so much of oil!
Happy Navrathri to you and yours!
Even 15 min will do. But then as I mention repeatedly, its the oil temp. u need to be careful about. I use a candy thermometer which helps me make crispy vadas --DK
By Nandita on Oct 12, 2012
Mouthwatering vadas!! Loved them :)
By Deepa on Aug 13, 2015