Batata Vada

About Batata Vada

Mumbai is popular for its wide range of street foods, from Sandwiches, Pakoras, Chaats to delicious Kulfis and Faloodas. Batata vada is one such street food that you will find almost everywhere, even in other regions of India. There are also a few different versions of these known as Aloo Bonda & veg bonda in Karnataka. They are easy to make and makes for a great snack.

The preparation for this appetizer starts with boiling the potatoes until fork tender. They are mashed and added to a tempering made with spices and herbs. Small portions of this spiced potatoes are shaped to balls.

The second part is to make a thick batter with gram flour, known as besan. These spiced potato balls are dipped in the thick batter and deep fried until crisp and golden. Sounds so good right!

Batata Vada are best served right out of the hot oil. These are good to serve on their own. A cup of Masala chai, or dry garlic chutney, Coriander chutney, Green chutney, Mint chutney, Red Garlic Chutney or some fried green chilies also go well.

For convenience you can also make the spiced potatoes ahead and refrigerate. Make the batter and fry them when you are ready to serve. They can be reheated in the oven or air fryer until crisp.

Expert Tips

• Potatoes: Perfectly boiled, fork tender potatoes are a must here. Do not overcook and make your potatoes too mushy and water logged. You can either cook them whole or diced in a pot or in a cooker following my instructions below.
• Corn flour or rice flour: Along with besan, corn flour is used to get a crisp texture. This also helps to retain the crispness for longer. If you do not use refined flour, you can substitute corn flour with rice flour.
• Consistency of batter: The consistency of the batter is the key to making good batata vada. The mixture should not be too thick or too thin. Check the video to know more on it.
• Soda-bi-carbonate: A tiny pinch of soda-bi-carbonate is used to make the batter light. But you can also skip it. I find no difference in skipping.

How to make Batata Vada

Prepare the Filling

1. Boil 3 medium potatoes until fork tender but not mushy or water logged. You can cook either in a pot or cooker. I cooked them in pressure cooker for 2 whistles with some water. You can also cook them diced in a pot of water. Once done cool them and crumble. You will need about 2 ¼ cups crumbled potatoes for this recipe.

2. Mince or crush ¾ inch peeled ginger, 2 to 3 garlic cloves and 2 to 3 green chilies. On a medium flame, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan. Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon mustard seeds.

3. When they begin to pop, add 1 sprig curry leaves (pat dry first) and fry until crisp.

4. Add ginger garlic and green chili paste. Sauté until a nice aroma comes out. This may get burnt very quickly so regulate flame to medium or low.

5. Add ¼ teaspoon turmeric, 1 pinch hing, ⅛ teaspoon red chili powder and ⅓ teaspoon salt.

6. Mix everything well.

7. Add crumbled potatoes and 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves.

8. Mix everything well. Turn off the stove. Taste test and adjust salt to your taste preference.

9. Cool this and make 7 to 8 equal sized balls.

Make batter

10. To a mixing bowl, add ¾ cup besan, 2 to 3 tablespoons rice flour or cornstarch, ⅓ teaspoon salt, a pinch of hing, 1 pinch of turmeric and ⅛ teaspoon chilli powder.

11. Pour ¼ cup water and begin to make a thick batter first, adding more water only as needed. Avoid pouring lot of water at one time as it makes a lot of lumps.

12. This is the consistency of the batter. If the batter is runny, the covering may turn thin or batata vada may break while frying. I have added a small pinch of soda to the batter just before dipping the balls in the batter. This is optional. This gives a light texture to the covering. Add it if using and mix well for a few seconds.

Fry Batata Vada

13. Heat oil in a kadai on a medium heat. Do not use very less oil. Test if the oil is hot enough by dropping little batter to the hot oil. It has to sizzle and rise to the surface. Ifit sinks it means the oil is not hot yet. When the oil is hot enough, drop a ball in the batter. Coat it well with batter with a spoon or with your fingers.

14. Gently slide to hot oil. You can fry 3 to 5 or even more depending on the size of your kadai and the amount of oil used.

15. Do not disturb them for at least 2 to 3 minutes as they can break. Stir them gently and fry on a medium heat.

16.When they are crisp fried and deep golden in color, remove to a cooling rack. Make sure the oil is hot enough before frying the second batch also avoid frying them in very hot oil. Discard the used oil and do not reuse.