Batata Vada (Maharashtrian Style) | Aloo Vada

Batata vada recipe with step by step pics. Batata vada is a fried potato stuffed fritter. This is absolutely lip smacking delicious recipe of Maharashtrian style batata vada.

Batata vada is a popular Mumbai street food snack. In Marathi language ‘potatoes’ are called as ‘batata’ and ‘vada’ means a ‘fried snack’. Hence the name. In Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra this snack is called batata vada.

There are a lot of variations in the way the potato stuffing is made. Even in Maharashtra batata vada tastes different in different regions like Pune, nashik, kolhapur etc.

In fact in Mumbai itself it tastes different amongst the different vendors. The taste is different due to the inclusion of different spices in the potato filling. This is the same batata vada that we use in the Vada pav.

These aloo vada are best enjoyed when they are served hot.

We always have Batata vada with some fried salted green chilies. This combo of the batata vada and green chilies is a spicy combination and you will like it if you like spicy food.

You can also serve batata vada with some coriander mint chutney or even tomato ketchup.

These Potato vada can be also stuffed between buns, bread rolls (pav) or bread and had with some onion or tomato slices or with a combination of Indian chutneys.

How to make batata vada

A) pressure cooking potatoes:

1. Rinse and then add 250 grams potatoes or 4 medium potatoes in a 2 litre pressure cooker. Also add 2 cups water.

2. Pressure cook for 7 to 8 minutes on medium flame or for 5 to 6 whistles.

3. When the pressure falls down on its own, remove the lid. The potatoes have to be cooked well. To check if the potatoes have cooked well, slid a knife through the center of the potatoes and it should slid smoothly without any resistance. remove the potatoes and let them become warm.

  

4. When the potatoes become warm, peel and then mash them with a fork or potato masher. Don’t mash too much.

 

5. Add 2 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves and salt as required to the mashed potatoes. Keep aside.

B) making green chili+garlic+ginger paste

6. In a small grinder take 1 to 2 green chilies (chopped), 1 teaspoon chopped ginger and 1.5 teaspoons chopped garlic. Adding more green chilies will give a spicy taste to the vadas.

7. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons water and grind to a smooth paste. You can also use a mortar-pestle to crush ginger, garlic and green chilies. No need to add water if crushing in mortar-pestle. Keep aside.

C) tempering

8. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a small pan. Keep the flame to a low. Add ½ teaspoon mustard seeds and let them crackle and pop.

9. When the mustard seeds crackle, then add ½ teaspoon cumin seeds. Cumin seeds can be skipped too.

10. Fry for a few seconds till the cumin seeds change color and also crackle. After the cumin seeds crackle, optionally, you can also add 1 medium sized onion (finely chopped) and sauté the onions till translucent.

11. Add ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and 1 pinch asafoetida .

12. Quickly give a stir.

13. Now add the ginger+garlic+green chili paste. The paste will splutter, so be careful. mix and stir.

14. Then add 6 to 7 curry leaves (chopped).

15. Sauté the paste for some seconds on a low flame.

16. Sauté for some seconds till the raw aroma of both ginger and garlic goes away.

Making potato filling for batata vada

17. Now add the entire sautéed mixture to the mashed potatoes.

18. Mix very well.

19. add ¼ teaspoon lemon juice.

20. Sprinkle ¼ to ½ teaspoon sugar. Sugar is optional and can be skipped. mix very well. Check the taste and add more salt if required.

21. Then make medium sized balls from the potato mixture. Slightly flatten the potato balls as it helps to fry the vadas easily. Keep aside.

Making batter for Batata vada

22. In another bowl, take 1 cup besan (gram flour), ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder.

23. Then add 1 pinch baking soda and ½ teaspoon salt or add as per taste.

24. Add ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon water in parts.

25. Begin to whisk.

26. Adding water in parts whisk to a smooth batter. Make a medium thick batter. If the batter looks thin, then you can add some more besan.

Frying batata vada

27. Heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or wok. keep the flame to medium.

28. When the oil becomes hot add ¼ to ½ teaspoon hot oil in the batter. Mix very well.

29. Check a small portion of batter in the oil and it should come up gradually and steadily on top. Now the oil is ready for frying aloo vada. Keep the flame to medium-low or medium.

30. Take a potato vada and dip it in the besan batter.

31. Gently coat it with the batter evenly all over.

32. Then gently place the vadas in hot oil.

33. Do not overcrowd the kadai. Add vadas depending on the size of the kadai. Fry on medium flame.

34. When one side becomes opaque, lightly crisp and light golden, turn each vada with a slotted spoon. continue to fry the second side.

35. When the second side is light golden, turn the batata vadas again.

36. This way turn the vadas a couple of times till they are golden.

37. Remove fried potato vada with a slotted spoon.

38. Place the batata vada on kitchen paper towels. This way fry the remaining batches of vadas.

Frying green chilies

39. in the same oil, fry 2 to 3 green chilies. Do slit each green chili before frying.

40. fry till the green chilies become lightly crisp and faintly golden.

41. Once the green chilies become warm, then sprinkle some salt on them. Mix salt with the green chilies.

42. Remove on kitchen paper towels.

                                      

Serve batata vada hot or warm with the fried salted green chilies, sweet tamarind chutney, coconut chutney and coriander chutney. You can also serve these delicious batata vadas with pav.