Traditonal vada pav recipe

Mumbai’s very own burger. The vada is made of a spicy potato filling deep fried in a gram flour batter. Along with a hot and spicy garlic chutney, it is served inside a small "Laddi Pav".

I have fond memories of sharing a vada pav with my son while travelling on a business trip to Vapi by train.

Although vada pav is a Maharashtrian dish, I was surprised to find it popular even in Gujarat. Another travelling ritual on my frequent drives to Pune is to stop at a small café on the highway to grab a quick vada pav and a steaming hot cup of Masala Tea that chases away all my travel fatigue.

Ingredients

• 8 ladi pavs (small squares of white bread)
• 1 recipe dry garlic chutney

For The Vada Filling

• 1 1/2 cups boiled and mashed potatoes
• 2 green chillies , chopped
• 1 1/2 tbsp grated garlic (lehsun)
• 2 tsp roughly chopped ginger (adrak)
• 1 tsp mustard seeds ( rai / sarson)
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• 6 to 8 curry leaves (kadi patta)
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
• 1 tbsp oil

For The Outer Covering

• 3/4 cup besan (bengal gram flour)
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
• a pinch of baking soda
• 1 tsp oil
• salt to taste

Other Ingredients

• oil for deep-frying

Method

For the vada fillling

• Pound the green chillies, ginger and garlic using a mortar and pestle.
• Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. When they crackle, add the asafoetida and curry leaves and sauté for a few seconds.
• Add the pounded mixture and sauté again for a few seconds.
• Add the potatoes, turmeric powder and salt and mix well.
• Remove from the fire and cool.
• Divide into 8 equal portions. Shape into rounds.

For the outer covering

• Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and make a batter using approximately 1/3 cup of water.
• Dip each round of the vada filling into the batter and allow it to coat the mixture well.
• Deep fry in hot oil, till golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and keep aside.

How to proceed

• Slice each pav into half and spread some dry garlic chutney inside.
• Place one vada in each pav and serve immediately.

Tips

• Laddi pavs are small square shaped white bread rolls which are available at local bakeries.
• You can also use bread roll or slices if the pav is not available.