Sabudana vada recipe with video & step by step photos. – Sabudana vada are crisp fried snack made with tapioca pearls, peanuts, potatoes and herbs. It is a popular Maharashtraian snack that is eaten not only as a tea time snack but also as a fasting or Upvas/ Vrat food. Sabudana khichdi and sabudana kheer are other foods made during Navratri & Ekadashi fastings.
These sabudana vada turn out delicious, crisp yet have a soft texture inside.
To make good sabudana vada, always soak the sabudana well until they turn soft. You can roast the peanuts ahead, crush them and store in a jar.
This saves some time on the day you prepare these vadas. Make sure your boiled potatoes are just cooked and not mushy otherwise sabudana vada will soak up lot of oil.
These are best served hot with chatni or some hot tea.
Tips for sabudana vada
1.Soaking sabudana : There are different kinds of sabudana available in the market, some soak up well in just 2 hours while some need 5 to 8 hours of soaking time. Adjust the soaking time as needed until the sabudana turns soft, without any hardness inside.
2.Checking sabudana: After the soaking time, press few sabudana pearls in between your thumb and forefinger. They must get mashed easily. Sabudana if not soaked well can burst in oil. So make sure they are soaked well and not hard from inside.
3.Potatoes : Boiled potatoes help in binding the mixture. So boil them with care without making mushy or soggy. Soggy potatoes often break up the sabudana vada while frying due to excess moisture.
4. Peanuts : Crushed peanuts help in absorbing the excess moisture if any. So I prefer to powder it. However you can just crush them coarsely in a mortar pestle if you prefer crunchy peanuts in the sabudana vada.
How to prevent them from breaking
1. Using flour : Earlier I had never used flour to make my sabudana vada. It is only a optional ingredient. But lately I have made them many times with flour and felt they are less greasy and more crisp with little flour added.
If your vadas break then you can fix it by adding 1 to 2 tbsps of flour to absorb excess moisture. If making the vadas on fasting days, then you can add some kuttu ka atta or rajgira flour.
3.Temperature of oil : Sabudana vada can break while frying if the oil is not hot enough. Always check if the oil is moderately hot enough to fry. Also fry on a medium high flame. Frying them on a very high flame will brown them too quickly. Frying on a low flame will make them oily.
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Sabudana vada recipe
Sabudana vada recipe | How to make sabudana vada
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
- ½ cup sabudana (tapioca pearls or sagu)
- 1 cup potatoes (heaped cup) cubed or 2 medium sized
- ¼ cup peanuts
- 1 tbsp coriander leaves chopped
- ½ tsp cumin or jeera
- 1 to 2 green chilies chopped
- rock salt powdered as needed
- 1½ tsps lemon juice (optional)
- 1½ to 2 tbsp flour (optional) kuttu ka atta if fasting
How to make the recipe
Soaking sabudana
- Add sabudana to a bowl. You can optionally rinse them well twice.
- Then pour ½ cup water and soak sabudana for 4 to 6 hours depending on the kind. You can also soak overnight.
- Some need only 2 hours of soaking while some need at least 5 hours.
- Once they are soaked, take few pearls in between your thumb and forefinger.
- Press down to check if they have softened. The pearls must get mashed well.
- Make sure they are soaked well & softened otherwise unsoaked sabudana may burst in oil.
- You can also bite and check. It should not be hard from inside.
- If you feel they are hard, soak them for a little longer.
- Drain them completely to a colander and set aside.
Other preparation
- Meanwhile roast peanuts until golden and aromatic.
- Cool completely.
- Pulse them in a blender only once to get coarsely crushed peanuts. Keep aside.
- Wash and peel potatoes. Boil them just until done and not too mushy or soggy.
- Mash them. If the potatoes are mushy then the vadas may break. So cook them just al dente.
- Mix together sabudana, mashed potato, peanuts, green chili, salt, cumin and coriander leaves. Add lemon juice (optional) and mix well.
- If the dough turns sticky, then just grease your finger lightly.
- Mixing well helps in binding the dough well and prevents the sabudana vada from breaking while frying.
How to make sabudana vada
- Make 10 to 12 balls and then slightly flatten to make the patties or vada.
- Do not make them too thin as they may break. Making then too thick will not cook them from inside.
- Heat oil in a kadai until hot enough.
- Drop a small portion of the dough to check if the oil is hot enough.
- The dough has to rise without browning quickly.
- Next take 1 tsp of the mixture in your hand and roll it to a small vada.
- Slide it in the hot oil to check if it doesn't disintegrate.
- If the ball breaks, then add the flour to the mixture and mix it well.
- Then shape them to vadas.
- Slide the sabudana vada in hot oil one after the other.
- On a medium high flame deep fry until golden flipping to and fro as needed.
- The vadas will puff well and turn golden & crisp on the outside.
- Drain them to a kitchen tissue or colander. Serve sabudana vada with green chutney.
Video
NUTRITION
Notes
- I have felt adding atleast 2 tbsps of flour makes the sabudana vada more crisp and less greasy.
- If you are fasting, then use kuttu ka atta or buckwheat flour. If not fasting then you can use rice flour or corn starch.
Preparation for sabudana vada recipe
1. Wash and soak half cup sabudana in half cup water for about 4 to 6 hours. When they are soaked they will be soft and get mashed easily.
2. Drain up the water completely. They double in size after soaking. Make sure they are soaked well and turned soft else sabudana may burst in oil while frying the vadas.
To check if sabudana is well soaked, take few soaked pearls in between your thumb and forefinger. Press down. They must get mashed well and completely. If it is even little bit hard in the center, then sabudana may burst in oil while frying.
Drain to a colander and set aside.
3. Dry roast 1/4 cup peanuts until golden.
4. Cool them completely and make a coarse powder. I removed the skin partially. Just pulse them once in a blender. We want a coarse powder.
5. Peel the skin and cube 2 medium sized potatoes. They must come up to at least 1 heaped cup. Boil them. Do not make them mushy. Drain any excess water or evaporate.
6. Mash them.
7. To the bowl of sabudana, add ground peanuts, mashed potato, jeera, chopped green chilies, chopped coriander leaves, lemon juice(optional) and powdered rock salt.
8. Mix everything well. If sticky, then just grease your finger lightly. Mixing well helps in binding the dough well and prevents the sabudana vada from breaking while frying.
How to make sabudana vada recipe
9. Make 10 to 12 equal sized balls from the dough.
10. Grease your palm and flatten the balls gently to give the shape of a vada. If they break towards the edges, you can just stick them back. Place them in a plate or foil.
Do not make them too thick or too thin. The vadas will puff up after frying. Very thick vadas will not get cooked inside and very thin vadas may break.
11. Heat oil in a pan until oil turns hot enough. Check by dropping a small portion of the dough to the hot oil. The dough must rise and not sink. This is the right temperature.
Next, take 1 tsp of the dough and shape to a small vada or ball and drop in the hot oil. If the vada doesn’t break then you can go ahead and fry all the vadas.
If the ball disintegrates in the oil, then add the flour to the mixture and mix well. shape to vadas. This step is optional only to ensure the vadas don’t get disintegrated in oil.
Deep fry them on a medium heat.
12. Fry until golden on both the sides.
Serve sabudana vada with green chutney or farali chutney.
Aparna says
Hi Swathi,
Whenever I like to try new something I look for your recipes. U r recipe’s are easy to make and tasty ..thank you ..keep uploading new…
swasthi says
You are welcome Aparna
Thank you so much! Glad you like them!
Ruchi says
Beautifully explained and well done as always. I followed your recipe without any changes. They turned out too good with the flour. Thank you very much.
swasthi says
You are welcome Ruchi.
Glad they turned out good.Thank you!
Latha Ganesh says
Hi Swasthi. Tried your Sabudana vada recipe. Came out very well. Thank you….. Happy Independence Day…. Cheers…
swasthi says
Hi Latha Ganesh
You are welcome. Thank you so much!
Wishing you all too a very “HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY”
Have a great day!
🙂
Ambrin says
I just love ur recipes. Its so simple and yummy! I gives me interest to much. Thunku so much.
swasthi says
Welcome Ambrin
Glad you like the recipes. Thank you.
🙂
Sumaiya sayyed says
Hi
Thanks for tips
Me zrur try krogi and i hope vada break na ho
swasthi says
Hi
Sumaiya
Welcome. Do try. I am sure your sabudana vada will not break if these tips are followed correctly.
Darshana S says
I am a diehard fan of your recipes. I dont know anything about cooking but i tried your given recipes and all of them are mouth watering. Best part of your recipes is.. They are very simple and tastes yum.
swasthi says
Hi Darshana,
Thanks a lot. Very happy to know the recipes are useful.
🙂
Tanzeema Shoheb Desai says
Today I’m trying this sabudana vada recipe I hope it will be better like my mom’s vada. And thank you for this recipe.
swasthi says
Hi Tanzeema
You are welcome. I am sure you will be able to make very good sabudana vada. Thanks for rating the recipe.
🙂
Rashmi says
Hi Miss Swathi,
Thank you for sharing this recepie. It had come out really very well. Just enjoyed n loved it. I have also tried your other recepies like Ghee roast, breakfast recepies. It has come out excellent specially ghee roast. Thanks again, take care
swasthi says
Hi Rashmi
You are welcome. So glad to know the food turned out good. Thank you so much!
🙂
Priya says
Thank you so much for the sabudana vada recipe. I tried these today. They came out so well. crisp, fluffy and so good like my mother’s vada.
swasthi says
Welcome Priya
Thanks for trying
Neha says
All burst in oil . I am unable to recognize what mistake I have done. I soak sabudana for 2 and a half hour. I took 1:1 ratio water to soak it. But it came out worse . Can anyone guess my mistake so that I dont repeat it
swasthi says
Hi Neha
Can you tell me which recipe you have used to make sabudana vada? Sabudana didn’t soak well. As I mentioned in the recipe notes, the sabudana must be soaked well and should not remain hard from inside. You must eat the sabudana or mash with your finger to check if it is soaked well. Secondly potato must not be very soggy and should not have too much moisture in it. I guess you went wrong with one of these.
Rajesh says
Can it be shallow fry
swasthi says
Yes you can shallow fry but make them flat otherwise sabudana may not puff up. If possible use a non stick pan
Prince Singh says
can bread crumps be added for crispiness ? my vada become too sticky and didn’t roll properly, too sticky
swasthi says
Yes you can add bread crumbs. Potatoes must be just cooked not mushy and sabudana must not be over soaked other wise the dough will turn sticky.
laxmiprassanna says
very delious food and healthy
Mitali Sujith says
Hi,
Tried this recipe.turned to be very yummy. Made a huge lots for a kitty party.
Thanks a lot.
On a lighter note: you should also write about cooking hazards for people like me who are not used to heavy cooking.
A sabudana burst and sprayed hot oil on me…??
Minor drops here ñ there…rest ok..?
swasthi says
Hi Mitali
Happy to know they turned out good. Actually this has never happened to me. But i hear from friends that sabudana if not soaked well can burst. Yes I will add your note in the post. Thanks for the suggestion.
Guttu says
Hey, I tried this recipe today. came out delicious !! My husband loved these. 🙂 Thanks.
I have one question, the outer fried layer of Vadas was a little difficult to chew, as in a bit sticky to the teeth. Is there any trick to make them chew easily ??
swasthi says
Hi Guttu
Thanks for trying.
I guess they were over fried or may be fried for long on medium or low heat.. Next time try to take them off a bit early. Also just keep an eye on the qty of aloo used. I.e use a bit more of aloo and check.
I hope these will help
Kusuma says
I tried these for Navarathri Naivedyam.. came very nice and delicious.. thanks..
swasthi says
welcome kusuma. So glad to know they came out good. Thank you
Vandana Bhuyan says
Hi Swasthi,
I tried this snack and it turned out really nice. While making the dough I just added little ginger. Tasted good. My only query is can I omit peanut powder? Or please suggest any other ingredients which can b mixed to make it more healthy.
Thanks a lot. Love ur recipes. When I doubt, I always follow ur blog.
swasthi says
Hi Vandana
You are welcome. Happy to know you like my recipes. Thanks for following the blog & recipes. Yes you can completely omit peanuts. You can also add little powdered red poha, or powdered oats or any whole grain flour like ragi, bajra, kuttu/buckwheat flours. 2 to 3 tbsps may be sufficient for the above recipe. Hope this helps
Vandana Bhuyan says
Thank you so much Swasthi.
Ana says
The first batch was ok, but the second batch just disintegrated in the oil. Any idea why this could happen?
swasthi says
If the mixture is not firm enough they can disintegrate. Meaning if the potatoes turn mushy. Even if the oil is not hot enough or the quantity of potatoes is not enough or if they are too thin that can happen. If you still have the mixture left, you can add little flour and use it up. If you have used according to the quantity mentioned in the recipe, then probably soggy potatoes or too thin vada may be the cause.
Ana says
I actually thought that the oil was too hot and reduced the flame. That might be the problem. The potatoes looked fine and Vadas were also not thin. I will try again. Thank you so much for the response 🙂
swasthi says
Welcome. If the oil is not hot, the mixture quickly absorbs oil and turns soggy, so they get disintegrated
Ana says
Nice recipe.Tried and come out good.
swasthi says
Thank you
Nita says
Came out very nice
swasthi says
Thanks Nita
pleased to know they came out nice
Deepa Shetty says
Hi
I soak sabudana full night to make sabudana vada. My vada always stick to my teeth. Do u think it is beacuse of overnight soaking? I usually make sabudana vada for breakfast so I have no options but to soak it a day before.
Kindly reply.
Thanks
swasthi says
Yes Deepa, it is most likely becoz the sabudana is over soaked. Try this tip next time.
Place sabudana in a wide bowl like i used. You should be able to spread them in a thin layer in the bowl. Rinse twice and spread them, add water just enough to immerse them, less than what i have used in the pics. They will not get over soaked as there is not much water, whatever you use to soak will be absorbed by the sago. You can also try with a different brand of sabudana.
Deepa Shetty says
Thanks for your response. i will try this for sure.
🙂