Sabudana Vada

Sabudana Vada, one of my favorite fasting snacks is a savory and mildly sweet patty featuring tapioca pearls (sago), potatoes, peanuts and herbs. It is naturally gluten-free and vegan. This fool proof recipe gives you a super delicious, crispy Sabudana Vada with a soft and light interior. 

How to make Sabudana Vada

Soak Sabudana

1. 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. Then soak the rinsed pearls in 2 to 2.5 cups water for 5 hours atleast or overnight.

I always soak them overnight and by morning they become soft. Some varieties of sabudana can also be soaked for 2 hours. I get a really hard textured sabudana and soaking them for 2 hours does not help.

So depending on the quality of your sabudana, soak for 2 to 3 hours or more. To test that they have soaked and softened really well, follow the points mentioned in the second step below.

Check Soaked Sago

2. When properly soaked, the sabudana pearls will be tender without any hard center. When you press the pearls between your forefinger and thumb, they would get mashed easily with a floury texture on your fingers.

If you feel some hardness in the center, then soak for some more time. When they are softened well, drain all the water from the soaked sabudana.

There should not be any water logged in the soaked pearls. Water will definitely make the patties moist and sticky. The patties will soak up a good amount of oil while frying making them loaded with oil. I am sure you do not want that!

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.

Use this time to prep your other ingredients. This is what I do. I let the soaked pearls sit in the strainer and begin to cook the potatoes and prep the other vada ingredients.

Cook Potatoes

3. Scrub and rinse 4 medium-sized potatoes thoroughly in water first. Then place the potatoes in a 3 litre cooker. Add water which just about covers the potatoes.

Note that you can choose to cook potatoes in a pan or in an Instant Pot.

1. If 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. Later drain the water really well and set the cooked potatoes aside.

2. For Instant Pot cooking, place a trivet in the inner steel insert 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.

4. For the stove-top pressure cooker, boil potatoes for 10 to 12 minutes or 4 to 5 whistles on medium-heat.

Check Cooked Potatoes

5. No matter how you have cooked the potatoes, you need to check if they are tender and softened.

1. For the stove-top pressure cooker, 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. For Instant pot, 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.

3. For pan, check the cooked potatoes with a fork or knife. Then using a strainer, drain all the water.

Whether you have cooked your potatoes on a stove-top or in the Instant Pot, you have to drain the water really well. Ensure that you do not have water logged in the cooked potatoes.

Let the potatoes become warm. Later peel and then chop them or crumble them. You can even mash them.

Roast Peanuts

6. When the potatoes are cooking, you can roast the peanuts. Heat a pan or kadai and add ½ cup peanuts in it.

If you have pre-made roasted peanuts, then skip these steps on roasting peanuts.

7. On a low to medium heat, stirring often roast the peanuts. Use a heavy pan, so that the peanuts do not get burnt.

8. Roast the peanuts until you see a few black chars or spots on their husks. They should be crunchy and well roasted with no rawness in the center.

Powder Peanuts

9. Transfer the peanuts to a plate and let them cool at room temperature. Once they are cooled, add them in a dry grinder or spice grinder. I have removed the husks. If you want you can keep them.

To remove the husks, take the cooled peanuts in your palms and rub them with your palms over your kitchen sink, so that the thin husks fall in the sink and not fly all around in your kitchen.

10. You can also take them in a cotton kitchen towel. Bring the edges of the napkin in the center making a bundle and then rub the peanuts in the bundle with your palms.

11. Grind to a semi-coarse powder. Keep the peanut powder aside. You can even make a fine powder.

12. Add the mashed potatoes and coarsely roasted groundnuts to the sabudana in the mixing bowl.

13. Next add 1 to 2 chopped green chilies (about ½ to 1 teaspoon), 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger and 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves. You can skip coriander leaves if you do not have them.

14. Squeeze 2 teaspoons lemon juice or according to your taste.

15. Now add 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1.5 teaspoons sugar and salt as per your taste. You can add less or more sugar as you like.

Mix and Shape into Sago Patties

16. Combine and mix thoroughly with your hands or with a spoon. Check the taste and add more salt, sugar and lemon juice if needed.

17. Now take some portion of the mixture in your hands and shape them into a flat round patty. This way use up all of the sabudana dough mixture. Set aside.

TIP: You can rub a bit of oil in your palms while forming the patties.

Deep Fry Sabudana Vada

18. Heat oil for deep frying in a kadai (wok) or a pan. Keep the heat to medium. When you see the oil shimmering, add a small patty. It should come up steadily and gradually in the oil.

If it breaks in the oil, then there is more moisture in the mixture. To reduce the moisture, you need to add some binding ingredient.

So you can add some more boiled mashed potatoes (if you have it) or include 2 to 3 tablespoons of kuttu ka atta (buckwheat flour), singhare ka atta (water chestnut flour), ragjira atta (amaranth flour).

If making the vada as an evening snack for non-fasting days, add rice flour. Mix again and shape in patties. Ideally, do this step before you fry these patties.

19. Gently place the patties in hot oil. Fry them at medium heat. Do not overcrowd the pan while frying.

20. When one side is light golden, then only turn them over with a slotted spoon. Do not be in a hurry to turn them as raw vada will fall apart in the oil.

When the vada looks crispy, light golden, then only gently turn them over.

21. Turn over again when the second side is golden.

22. Continue to fry turning over a couple of times until the sabudana vada are evenly golden and crisp.

23. Remove fried sabudana vada with a slotted spoon draining the extra oil in the pan.

24. Place them on kitchen towels to remove excess oil. Fry all the sago patties this way. Fry the remaining batches of the prepared vada in this manner.

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.