Sabudana Vada Recipe (Maharashtrian Style)

closeup shot of a stack of sabudana vada on top of each other in a white plate with red chilli sauce in a white bowl

4.98 from 36 votes

Sabudana Vada Recipe (Maharashtrian Style)

Sabudana Vada is a popular savory deep fried snack made during Hindu fasting days, featuring tapioca pearls (sago), potatoes, peanuts and herbs. They are naturally gluten-free and vegan. This fail-proof Maharashtrian style Sabudana Vada recipe gives you a super delicious crispy vada with a soft and light interior.

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time5 30

Course: Breakfast, Snacks

Cuisine: Maharashtrian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Servings: Sabudana Vada

Calories: 107kcal

Author: Dassana Amit

Ingredients

1 cup sabudana (sago or tapioca pearls)
4 potatoes - medium-sized
½ cup peanuts
1 teaspoon cumin seeds - optional
1 to 2 green chillies - finely chopped or ½ to 1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon ginger - finely chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves - optional
1.5 teaspoon sugar or as required
1 to 2 tablespoons buckwheat flour or amaranth flour - optional
rock salt (edible and food grade) or sendha namak
oil as required, for deep frying

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Soaking Sabudana

You need to plan ahead and soak the sago pearls. It is very important to soak the sago really well.
Important: Please refrain from using un-soaked or under-soaked sabudana to avoid scalding or burns as they will burst and shatter in oil when frying.
First optionally, using a colander or mesh strainer rinse 1 cup sabudana lightly twice draining all the water.
Soak the sabudana or sago in water for 5 hours at least or overnight. I soaked the sago pearls overnight and by morning they had become soft.
When properly soaked, the sabudana pearls will be tender without any hard center. When you press the pearls between your forefinger and thumb, they should get mashed easily with a floury moist texture on your fingers.
If you feel some hardness in the center, then soak for some more time. Drain all the water really well from the soaked sabudana.
There should not be any water logged in the soaked pearls. Water will make the patties moist and sticky.
The patties will soak up a good amount of oil while frying making them loaded with oil. So drain the water really well.
You can opt to gently and lightly press the soaked pearls in the strainer with a spoon or spatula.
Or set aside the pearls in a strainer (keeping a bowl beneath) for some 20 to 30 minutes dripping of any extra water.
After draining the water thoroughly transfer the sabudana in a mixing bowl and set aside.

Cooking Potatoes

Scrub and rinse 4 medium-sized potatoes thoroughly in water first.
1. Stove-top pressure cooker: Place the potatoes in a 3 litre cooker. Add water which just about covers the potatoes. Pressure cook potatoes for 10 to 12 minutes or 4 to 5 whistles on medium heat.
When the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, open the lid and check the potatoes.
Pass a knife or fork through the center of the potatoes and it should slide easily without any resistance.
2. Cooking in a pan: Take water and add peeled and chopped potatoes. The water should cover the potatoes. Add a 2 to 3 pinches of salt if preferred.
Cover and simmer potatoes until fork tender. Drain the water really well. When the potatoes are tender, using a strainer, drain all the water.
3. For Instant Pot cooking: Place a trivet in the inner steel of your Instant Pot. Add 1.5 cups water. Place the rinsed potatoes on the trivet.
Seal with the lid and position the valve to sealing. Press the manual/pressure cook button and set the time to 10 or 12 minutes with high pressure option.
After you hear the beep when the pressure cooking is complete, wait for 5 minutes and then do a quick pressure release.
Remove the potatoes with tongs and place them in a plate or tray. Check the potatoes to see if they are cooked tender with a fork or knife.
Let the potatoes become warm. Later peel and then chop them or mash them.

Roasting Peanuts

On a skillet or in a shallow pan, roast the groundnuts/peanuts till they become crisp and crunchy.
Cool and then coarsely powder in a mortar-pestle or in a dry grinder. You can even make a fine powder.

Making Sago Mixture

Add the mashed potatoes and coarsely ground roasted groundnuts to the sabudana in the mixing bowl.
Add edible rock salt, cumin seeds, sugar, ginger, green chillies, coriander leaves and lemon juice to the sabudana . Mix the entire mixture very well.
Now take some portion of the mixture in your hands and shape them into flat round vada or patty. Set aside.
Repeat until you use up the entire dough mixture.

Making Sabudana Vada

Heat oil for deep frying in a kadai. Add a tiny ball made from the mixture.
Fry it on medium flame. If this ball does not break while frying, then you are good to go.
If it breaks, then add 1 to 2 tablespoons of rajgira atta (or amaranth flour) to the mixture and mix well.
Now gently place the vada in the oil. Keep the heat to medium or medium-high while frying. If the oil is warm, the vada will absorb a lot of oil and become soggy.
Add the vada for frying depending on the size of the kadai. Do not crowd the kadai or pan.
When one side gets golden, then only flip the vada. Otherwise, don't even touch as they might break if not cooked.
Turn over a couple of times so as to fry the sabudana vada evenly. Fry until they are crisp and golden
Remove them with a slotted spoon. Place on kitchen paper towels to absorb excess oil. Fry the remaining batches of the patties this way.
Serve Sabudana Vada hot or warm.

Serving Suggestions

Sabudana Vada can be made for Hindu fasting days or an evening snack too. It is crispy and delicious and thus tastes great with simple Coconut Chutney and even sweetened Curd (Yogurt).
To make the sweetened curd, you will just need to add some sugar to the curd and mix it. If short of time, you can even serve with sweet Tamarind Chutney or tomato ketchup.
You can also enjoy it with Coriander Chutney.

Make Ahead Options

To make ahead, boil, peel, mash and store the potatoes in your refrigerator a day prior. Roast peanuts and powder them. Refrigerate them for 1 to 2 days.
You can soak the sabudana a day earlier and keep it in the refrigerator after draining the water.
Any leftover dough mixture stays well in the fridge for 1 to 2 days.

Video

Notes

Recipe Notes

Soaking: The sabudana (sago) has to be really soaked well. Not even a little hardness should be left in the sago as this will cause the sago to burst in the oil while frying.
Moisture: The water needs to be drained well. Use a strainer or a colander to drain the water. If there is moisture in the mixture, then you won't get a proper shape of the vada and they will become soggy from inside. As a result they will soak up a lot of oil while frying and can fall apart in the hot oil.
For a more crispy vada: For an extra crispy texture, you need to brown the vada a little extra. This can be achieved by frying for a few minutes more.
Premade roasted peanuts: You could use roasted peanuts which are unsalted. Only if the peanuts are not roasted, then you need to roast them. You can also roast the peanuts a couple of days before and then use them in the recipe. If they are roasted, then on roasting the skin becomes flaky and you can remove the skin easily from the peanuts with your fingers.
Binding: If the patties breaks or bursts while frying, then add some flour (buckwheat, amaranth, water chestnut flour) in the vada mixture. If not making as a fasting snack, then add rice flour.

Frying & Oil Temperature Ideally the oil must have a medium to medium-high heat. You can check the temperature by adding a small shaped vada in the oil.

If it emerges on the surface gradually, and is sizzling, bubbling, the oil is ready. If the patty comes up slowly or is sunk at the bottom of the pan, the oil is warm.

The oil is very hot, if it rises up on the surface too quickly or briskly. If the oil is too hot, the patties will burn from outside leaving the inside portion uncooked.

A lukewarm oil will lead to the patties absorbing more oil, making them loaded and soggy with oil.

A very hot oil will burn the patties from outside leaving the inside portion under cooked.

If the oil is warm, the patties will absorb oil, making them loaded with oil and soggy.

Variations

With Sweet Potato: Swap potatoes with sweet potatoes and make a sweet tasting patties.
With Onions: Traditionally onions and garlic and never added to the fasting sabudana vada recipe. If you are willing to experiment, you can add onions or garlic to the vada dough mixture.
Nuts: Again an authentic and traditional sabudana vada recipe always features peanuts. If you do not have peanuts, make the vada without them or swap with cashews. Some fresh grated coconut (about 2 tablespoon) can be added to the vada mixture.
Herbs: Feel free to omit coriander leaves in the recipe. You can replace coriander with about 1 tablespoon of mint leaves or add about 1 tablespoon of chopped curry leaves. Note that the taste and flavor will change with either mint or curry leaves.
Spices: The only spice that gives some heat and pungency in the recipe are green chillies. Opt to add some crushed black pepper (about ½ teaspoon) instead of green chillies. For a spicy taste and when not making for the fasting time, add ½ to 1 teaspoon of red chilli powder or cayenne pepper.
Scaling: According to your needs, you can easily halve, double or triple this recipe

Nutrition