Three elements come together to make Mumbai's most stunning and beloved street food, the vada pav: a pillowy wheat bun, a crispy, golden, round batata vada, and a spicy garlic chutney. Try it, and you'll keep coming back for more!
Today I have for you the the most iconic and ubiquitous snack straight from the streets of Bombay: the inimitable Vada Pav.
I like to think of the vada pav as an Indian hot dog-- a vegetarian one. A spicy, deep-fried, incredibly crispy potato dumpling cradled within a soft, fluffy roll and smeared with some exquisitely red-hot garlic chutney. These many layers of flavor, textures and the stark, rustic simplicity have long secured the vada pav's place as one of the city's most sought-after -- and affordable -- foods.
You can find vendors at practically every street corner in the city frying the red-gold vadas in bubbling hot oil and serving them up to salivating customers faster than you can say "vada pav."
When I was at school, the cafeteria served up vada pavs for as little as a rupee, which is about the equivalent of two cents. I don't think any of the kids even considered eating anything else-- I certainly didn't. And although I am sure it costs much, much more now, thanks to rapid inflation in India over the past few years, it is no doubt one of the most affordable snacks you can find anywhere in the city.
I try to make my vada pav healthier without taking away any of the flavor by making the pav, or the tiny roll that the vada is cradled in, with whole wheat flour. This is a recipe I'm really proud to share with you because it's just so darn good. I used some wheat gluten flour to help build the bread's structure and it was just as cushiony and soft as the traditionally white pav.
The vada and the pav can both be at room temperature when you serve them, which means you can do most of your work beforehand.
Looking for more Mumbai street foods?
Batata Vada
Ingredients
- 4 potatoes (boiled, peeled and mashed)
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida (hing)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste
- 1 teaspoon green chilli paste (crush green chilies in mortar and pestle)
- 2 teaspoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¾ cup chickpea flour (sifted to remove any lumps)
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder (like paprika or cayenne)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- Salt to taste
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- Vegetable oil for deep frying the vadas
Instructions
- Heat the oil and add the turmeric and the asafetida.
- Now add the ginger, garlic and chilli pastes and saute just a few seconds. Add the potatoes and salt, mix well, and take off the heat. Mix in the lemon juice.
- Allow the mixture to cool before you handle it.
- Mix the chickpea flour with red chili powder, turmeric, baking soda and salt. Add enough water to make a fairly thick batter, about the consistency of pancake batter.
- Make balls with the potato mixture, about 1 inch in diameter. Dunk one at a time into the chickpea batter. Turn to coat and then drop into the oil which should be at between 350 and 375 degrees.
- Fry the vadas on all sides until they turn reddish-brown. Don't overcrowd the pan. Remove to paper towels and drain.
Garlic Chutney/Lasoon Chutney
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut (grated)
- 10 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoon peanuts
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 4 dry red chillies (reduce if you really don't want the heat, but 4 doesn't make this chutney too hot)
- ½ inch ball tamarind pods
- 2 teaspoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In one teaspoon of oil, roast half the garlic cloves and the rest of the ingredients except the tamarind and salt, allowing everything to turn lightly golden brown and putting each into a plate before moving on to the next ingredient. Be very careful roasting the coconut because it will brown very fast.
- Place all the ingredients including the unroasted garlic cloves, the tamarind, salt and remaining 1 teaspoon oil in a food processor.
- Process until everything breaks down into a coarse powder.
Whole Wheat Laadi Pav
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole-wheat flour
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoon vital wheat gluten flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- 3 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
Instructions
- Mix the sugar, ½ cup warm water and the yeast in a mixing bowl and set aside for about 10 minutes until the mixture starts to froth, indicating the yeast is alive and well.
- Sift all the flours and baking soda into the bowl. Knead on low speed in a stand mixer or by hand for about 3 minutes, trickling in 1 cup of water until you have a dough that's smooth but slightly sticky
- Add the oil and continue to knead until the oil has been absorbed by the dough, about 1 more minute.
- Now place in an oiled bowl, turning over once to coat all over with oil, cover with a kitchen towel, and set aside for 2 hours until the dough has risen.
- Punch down the dough and divide into 9 or 12 balls, depending on how large or small you want your pav.
- Shape them into a slightly rectangular shape by pulling at the sides of the dough and tucking under on all four sides.
- Place the tolls in a rectangular 9 X 13 inch baking dish smeared with oil and lightly floured, or on a cookie sheet, close enough but not touching each other. Let the rolls rise for an hour. They will join at the ends when they have risen, forming a slab, or laadi in Marathi
- Preheat the oven to 370 degrees. Place the pav in the oven and bake 23 minutes.
- Brush the tops with a little oil, if desired, for a pretty, glossy look.
- Remove to a rack and allow the rolls to cool before breaking them off.
To assemble the vada pav, make a slit through the center of the pav without going all the way through the bottom. Slater the bottom with some of the garlic chutney, place a vada on top, place your thumbs on the underside of the pav and your fingers on top, press the top and bottom together, and dig in.
LittleMy
this looks incredible! i'm making it this weekend, super bowl be damned.
oflittlemy.blogspot.com
Anonymous
Hahahaha....Dear Vaishali, you actually brought back memories of good old Andheri (West) where Shiv Sena Batate Vade Wala stall located near the Apna Bazaar. I still remember his great batata vadas, which were available ar Re 1 for seven when we were kids. The last I ate there was in 1995, just before departing India, and a vada pav there was priced at Rs 3, if I recall correctly. Guess it must be somewhere in the region of Rs 10 each now.
Luv...Ashwin.
Apu
I make laadi pav all the time - its so good when home made!! Vadas look yummy!!
Mints!
WOW!! I must try the laadi paav now. I need to be courageous 😀
BatataVadas look lovely!!!
Manasi
Thank you, Vaishali. I am planning to bake a loaf today, will use the proportion u suggest 🙂
AMA's AnythingVegetarian
I love the color of your garlic chutney.The homemade pav looks yummy too.
Raw_Girl
you've elevated the mundane vada pau into an art form, dear! 🙂
Pavithra
Wow looks awesome...With wheat bread looks healthier.
Fifi
Yum Vaishali, this looks divine. You are a very talented lady. I shall have to make this soon although I shall try to pan fry. The whole deep-frying is too much for me:).
Priya
Omg, am drooling here...that garlic chutney looks super delicious..
Vaishali
Sanjeeta, Satya, Thanks!
Sharmila, The garlic chutney is my favorite too. I roast half the garlic to mellow the flavor a little, but for incorrigible garlic lovers I would advise leaving all the garlic raw. That's how my parents did it.
Divya, thanks!
Manasi, The gluten flour gives the bread structure-- without it the bread would not be as fluffy. I would advise cutting down a bit on the whole wheat flour if you're not using gluten-- use 1 cup whole wheat and 2 cups of all purpose. Also, you might need a little less water so trickle it in slowly.
Manasi
What a coincidence! I just got WWFlour from the store for making paav
One question though.. is the gluten absolutely necessary?
divya
Soooo delicious and simply superb vada pav..... tempting clicks..
Sharmila
Perfect, perfect looking all three! Much thanks for the garlic chutney recipe Vaish ... always wondered how they made it. I love crushed garlic and green chillies in the potato mix ... but then have never made them .. always get them from the shops. The buns are just so great looking. 🙂
Satya
The vada pav looks so perfect ... the bread and filling look superb and the garlic chutney flavor will definitely will make it more enticing
Super Yummy Recipes
Sanjeeta kk
Wholewheat paav looks so wonderful with the wheaty color and fluffy texture. Love that garlic chutney, will treasure the recipe for my idlies, dosas and chapattis.