EsyRecipes

Discription:The stacks of pav have been sprinkled with chutney – the top half of the inside of the bun is bathed in green chutney, the bottom with red garlic chutney…I walk away from the stall  and crush the vada by pressing down on it with the pav, little cracks appear in the crispy surface, and the vada oozes out its potato and pea mixture.  I eat.  The crispy batter, the mouthful of sweet-soft pav tempering the heat of the chutney, the spices of the vada mixture – dark with garam masala and studded with whole cloves of garlic that look like cashews – get masticated into a good mouthful, a good mouth-feel.  My stomach is getting filled, and I feel like I am eating something nourishing a long spell of sobbing.

Vada stuffing:

• 3 cups boiled, peeled and mashed potatoes (that is about 4 big potatoes)
• 1/2 tea spn cumin seeds
• 1/2 tea spn mustard seeds
• 4-5 curry leaves
• 1/2 tea spn ginger garlic paste
• 2 green chilies
• 3-4 strands coriander leaves
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• A pinch turmeric
• Oil
• Salt

• Heat a little oil and add mustard, cumin seeds. When it starts popping, add curry leaves, green chilies, ginger garlic paste, onions and fry till onions turn translucent. Add the potatoes, turmeric, salt and mix well. If there are any big pieces of potatoes, add a little water and close and cook for few minutes, then mash and mixed well.
• Add chopped coriander leaves and mix. Let it cool a bit.

Vada coating:

• 1/2 cup gram flour (besan)
• 1 tbl spn rice flour (added for crispiness)
• 1/2 tea spn chili powder
• Salt

How to make:

• Mix all the above ingredients with water to make a smooth paste. As soon as water it added to the flours, it starts becoming lumps, so mix it with hand to remove lumps or use a egg whisk. Do not make it too thin, the coating does not hold on to the stuffing it is too thin.

Making vadas:

• Heat oil for deep frying.
• Make a ping-pong ball sized round from the stuffing. Dip the ball into the coating batter and deep fry in hot oil. Take out on a paper towel.

Green chutney:

• 9-10 strands coriander leaves
• Few mint leaves (optional, I didn’t use it)
• 3 green chilies
• 1″ piece ginger (optional)
• Salt
• Method:
  Grind all to a smooth paste. Do not make too watery.

Red chutney:

• 1 cup dried coconut (or dessicated coconut)
• 2 tbl spns chili powder
• 1 tea spn chopped garlic
• 1/4 tea spn tamarind extract or 1-2 pieces of tamarind (optional, added for tanginess)
• Salt

How to make:

• Dry roast coconut and tamarind till it turns slightly brownish. Grind together with all other ingredients. This is dry powder, so do not add water. It can be stored in air tight containers for about a month.

Sweet chutney :

• 5-6 dates(khajoor)
• 1/2 tea spn tamarind extract or about 4-5 pieces of tamarind
• 1/2 tea spn jaggery(optional, added only if sweetness of dates is not enough)
• Salt

Method:

• Soak dates in warm water for about 30mins. Take out seeds (better yet, use seedless dates). Grind with all other ingredients.

Making vada pav:

• Take a pav (I used Savory butter rolls from King’s Hawaiian, which are slightly smaller than the actual pav). Cut open the rolls horizontally, taking care one end is still connected.
• Apply three chutneys to pav as desired.

Serves : 4-5

• Preparation time : 40mins