• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Browse Recipes
    • Latest
    • By Category
  • Indian Vegan Recipes
  • SUBSCRIBE
Holy Cow Vegan
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Latest recipes
  • Browse by category
  • Indian Vegan Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ร—

    Home > Indian Vegan Recipes > Tamil Recipes

    Vaidehi Manni's Super-Crispy Potato Vada

    Posted: May 11, 2010 ยท Updated: Mar 20, 2022

    Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe

    A crispy, savory south Indian potato fritter. This recipe comes from my sis-in-law, Vaidehi.

    Photo of crispy south Indian potato vada

    This recipe for a South Indian style Super Crispy Potato Vada is from my sister-in-law, Vaidehi Manni.

    Madras is a bursting, flourishing metropolis in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu that remains, to this day, firmly rooted in age-old culture and tradition.

    This is where Desi was born and where he grew up before moving to Bombay for a job. Some of his siblings still live there, so it is always a stop on our return trips to India.

    My ideas about Madras, or Chennai as it is now called, began to take shape long before I met Desi. As a child growing up in Bombay, I learned of the city through the stories and anecdotes that my best friend and neighbor, Radha, brought back with her after each summer vacation spent visiting relatives there. Radha painted a fascinating land: of arid, acrid summers where some people walked miles to find water; a megalopolis suffused with small-town charm, where neighbors strolled in and out of open doors any time of the day and night and where women gathered in the verandahs of their single-storey homes after the day's cooking was done to share news of their small but lively worlds.

    A city so orthodox that, she told me once, deadpan, a crowd gathered to watch her each time she stepped out of the house wearing pants (saris and salwar-kameezes are de rigueur for women here).I visited Madras years later for the first time, to visit Desi's family. The city felt familiar, already, but with many pleasant surprises. The startling blue of the ocean at Marina Beach dazzled this Bombay girl used to the murky-brown of the Arabian Sea that hugs India's west coast. Mount Road raged, traffic gushing non-stop through its noisy artery. In T-Nagar, the city's shopping hub, stores bustled with housewives sharply scrutinizing everything from steel coconut scrapers to dazzling silk saris bordered with silver and gold threads to expensive, diamond-studded jewelry at the ostentatious Thanga Maligai store.

    I loved everything about the city. Even getting on one of the green Pallavan buses with left-side seats reserved for women and driving over Beach road and the white, curved bridge that swept over the Coovum river was a tiny thrill.

    Tamilians are nothing if not religious, and the city is packed with temples like the Kapaleeshwar temple in Mylapore with its intricate, jewel-hued gopuram, historic churches like the Santhome Cathedral on Marina Beach, and the twinkling Thousand Lights mosque on Mount Road.

    My favorite landscapes, though, were the semirural ones. Quiet (then) suburbs like Chromepet, where Desi's parents lived. Their home was a flat, single-storied building topped with a terrace and fronted by a wide verandah where his father would spend a good deal of time chatting with and waving to neighbors as they strolled by. Behind the house was a well that, he told me, had never run dry, even in the harshest summers. The yard was dotted with mango and coconut trees and closer to the house Desi's mom, Amma, had planted all sorts of vegetables.

    A short train ride away, further from the city, was Desi's alma mater, Madras Christian College, its campus rich with red earth, emerald trees and scurrying wildlife.

    Over my many trips back to Madras, I've watched with some sadness as it has changed, just like the rest of India. The prosperity that has suffused the country's middle class has sprawled here too, perhaps more rapidly than it has any other place. Distant suburbs, once brown, dusty spreads of land, are now packed street to street with single-family homes. The nearer suburbs, once lined with single-family homes, are now filled with taller buildings bustling with families. Bright new cars and two-wheelers roar on narrow neighborhood roads not quite ready to be driven on.

    Desi's parents have passed on and their beautiful home has been replaced by an apartment building.

    The road from the airport is fringed by expensive hotel chains to accommodate foreign travelers drawn by business to this high-tech hub, and, sometimes, prodigal children visiting from recently-set-up homes far far away. Madras, with more engineering colleges than any other city in India, ships out thousands of software engineers to countries like the United States each year.

    But underneath all these nouveau trappings, the city holds rigidly on to a culture shaped by centuries of tradition. And, it's true, women usually don't wear the pants, if you know what I mean.

    A few years back, traveling around Madras on a work assignment to explore the reasons behind why India produces so many engineers and doctors compared to the United States, I interviewed families and students in the city. While more and more women were becoming engineers and going out of their homes to work, some things remained unchanged: most are found husbands for and married off as soon as they've stepped into their early 20s. And while some continue to bring in the bread and butter it, they are also expected to return to more traditional roles in their families the minute they stepped in through their homes' thresholds.

    This past week, Desi's brother and sister-in-law, both natives of Madras who've lived in Sydney for the past two decades and raised their children there, were visiting with us. To me, every visit from my Tamil relatives is a great opportunity to learn more about the foods of their native land. Vaidehi manni, my sister-in-law, made for us this incredibly delicious for a super crispy potato vada that I am sharing today.

    In the part of the world I come from, a potato vada is a ball of cooked potato mixed with spices, dipped in a chickpea batter, and deep-fried. This potato vada was differently delicious. Incredibly crunchy, it has a melt-in-your-mouth texture that makes you forget, for at least as long as you're eating it, that it probably has a bazillion calories in it.

    But what the heck-- everyone deserves some indulgence once in a while, don't they?

    Here's the recipe, then. Enjoy, all!

    Related recipes

    • Crispy Baked Potato Vadas, No Oil
    • Vada Pav
    • Vegan Dahi Vada
    • Masala Vadai
    • Sabudana Vada (Sago Fritters), oil-free.



    Vaidehi Manni's Super-Crispy Potato Vada

    South Indian style crispy potato vada made with ginger, curry leaves and onions.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Review Recipe
    Course: Snack
    Cuisine: Indian
    Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
    Keyword: South Indian Potato Vada
    Prep Time: 15 mins
    Cook Time: 20 mins
    Total Time: 35 mins
    Servings: 24 vadas
    Calories: 48kcal
    Author: Vaishali ยท Holy Cow! Vegan Recipes

    Ingredients 

    • 3 medium potatoes (boiled, peeled and mashed)
    • 1 medium onion (chopped fine)
    • 2 green chilli peppers (minced)
    • 2 tablespoon chickpea flour (besan)
    • 2 tablespoon rice flour
    • 1 tablespoon ginger (grated)
    • 8-10 curry leaves (crushed)
    • Salt to taste
    • Vegetable oil for deep frying
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Mix all the ingredients well.
    • Heat the oil in a pan wide enough to deep-fry in. If possible, use a thermometer to ensure it reaches between 350 and 375 degrees before you begin to fry.
    • Make a ball of the potato dough, about ยพ of an inch in diameter, and place it on your fingers.
    • Using the thumb of the same hand, flatten it out into a disc, about 1 ยฝ inches wide.
    • Slip the wadas into the oil, as many as the pan will take at a time without becoming overcrowded.
    • Fry each side until golden-brown.
    • Serve hot with chutney or just enjoy by itself.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1vada | Calories: 48kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Potassium: 126mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 13IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Please leave a comment and recipe rating below!
    Follow Holy Cow Vegan on Instagram
    « Be Well, Lucy
    Multigrain Wholegrain Bread »
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Yummly

    About Vaishali


    Hi! I am so happy you're here. I'm Vaishali, and I've been sharing recipes for delicious vegan food at Holy Cow Vegan since 2007. Every one of the more than 1,000 recipes on this blog has been tried and tested -- and loved -- by my family and I. I hope you will find something here to share with your loved ones. Thanks for stopping by!
    Read more about me here.

    Try these recipes next

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. AdukalaVishesham

      May 21, 2010 at 5:32 am

      I am a big chennai fan.. My cousins live there and i used to love visiting them when i was a kid... Got an opportunity to really explore the city when i started working there..
      Vada looks superb.. crispy and crunchy

      Reply
    2. AMA's AnythingVegetarian

      May 20, 2010 at 1:31 pm

      Sent you an email :).

      Reply
    3. AMA's AnythingVegetarian

      May 19, 2010 at 11:32 am

      VAishali,I took the time to read ur post this morning.Nice to know Desi's parents are from Chromepet.Actually my mom's parents and mom are from chromepet.They still live there .My mom went to the vaishnav college.From your description I can guess Desi's parents live closer to the college and station.During my every visit to India we spend couple of days at my maternal parents house .Such a peaceful place unlike the city buzz.I am excited to see when somebody recognizes chromepet .My mom is reading this post along with me she is super excited.:).U made our day.

      Reply
    4. suma

      May 18, 2010 at 8:51 am

      Look super crisp and yum..my mashed and deep fried potatoes always crumble in oil no matter wt I do..

      Reply
    5. โ™ฅSugarโ™ฅPlumโ™ฅFairyโ™ฅ

      May 17, 2010 at 9:28 am

      A lovely hue and delicious too!!!

      If u have an Indian address, here are more than jus a few chances to win , a few goddies, ur sure to love or send to ur loved ones, lods of chances to enter ur name, for every chance , add a separate entry ie comment...all the best:-))

      Reply
    6. The Voracious Vegan

      May 17, 2010 at 6:24 am

      Those look AMAZING! I love how crisp and light they look, and that color! Just stunning.

      Reply
    7. Daisy

      May 16, 2010 at 8:33 pm

      Amazing colors! I'm going to show these to my mom, because she's crazy about potatoes, so crazy that I have this theory that she was an Indian woman in one of her past lives. "I'm sure" ๐Ÿ˜‰ she lived in India: nuts about potatoes, loves mangoes and monkeys, family above everything, e-x-c-e-l-l-e-n-t chef - good lord! - everything she cooks (vegan or not) is delicious, unfortunately I didn't get her genes on this lol.
      I'm so glad to read that Lucy is doing well, our hearts feel lighter :). Keeping my fingers crossed for her.
      With Love,
      Susana.

      Reply
    8. The Housewife

      May 15, 2010 at 12:12 am

      Ypu've made me so homesick! I'm from Madras and its going to be a long time before I get to go back home again! Loved your post, thoughts on Marina beach and the recipe ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
    9. AMA's AnythingVegetarian

      May 14, 2010 at 9:18 pm

      I am lagging behind all the posts life is so crazy..Howz Lucy doing.Will catch up on your posts at my own pace.

      Reply
    10. Divya Vikram

      May 14, 2010 at 5:27 pm

      Lovely post about Chennai. Brought back memories. Great to know Lucy is recovering and the vadas look too good ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
    « Older Comments

    Leave a comment: Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Vaishali Honawar, Holy Cow Vegan author, profile photo

    Hi, I'm Vaishali! I cook, eat and share easy, tasty and nutritious plant-based recipes from my Washington, D.C. kitchen, but I never fight a craving for samosas or French fries. 

    More about me โ†’

    Trending recipes

    • Vegan Picadillo Tacos
    • Vegan Zucchini Pasta
    • Chickpea Rice
    • Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff
    • Mexican Tofu with Apricots, Chipotle and Tamarind
    • Vegan Swedish Meatballs

    How to make

    • Dosa Recipe | How to Make Perfect Dosai at Home
    • Easy Mushroom Stock
    • Sambar Powder (Sambar Masala)
    • Roti recipe. How to make the softest Roti/Chapati (step by step with video)
    • Healthy Whole Wheat Vegan Puff Pastry (1/2 the fat)
    • Easy Indian Curry Paste for Restaurant-Style Dishes
    • Vegan Mayo
    • How to Make Curry Powder
    Vaishali Honawar, Holy Cow Vegan author, profile photo

    Hi, I'm Vaishali! I cook, eat and share easy, tasty and nutritious plant-based recipes from my Washington, D.C. kitchen, but I never fight a craving for samosas or French fries. 

    More about me โ†’

    Trending recipes

    • Vegan Muffaletta Casserole
    • Cheezy Vegan Mexican Black Bean Casserole
    • Vegan Indian-Spiced Tofu Casserole
    • Lentil Soup
    • Cauliflower Rice Biryani (Keto + Vegan)
    • Easy Vegetable Curry (One-pot, 30 minutes)

    How to make

    • Vegan Instant Pot Yogurt
    • Air Fryer Tofu
    • Ginger Garlic Paste for Indian Recipes | How to make and store it
    • Garam Masala Recipe
    • How to Make a Sourdough Starter (Easy Step by Step Guide)
    • How to make sauerkraut
    • Gluten Free Sourdough Starter
    • Homemade Biryani Masala Spice Mix

    Footer


    ABOUT HOLYCOWVEGAN

    All Recipes
    Recipe Videos
    About Vaishali
    Privacy Policy

    VEGAN INDIAN RECIPES

    Vegan Dal or Dahl Recipes
    Vegan Curry Recipes
    Indian Vegan Desserts

    VEGAN BAKING RECIPES

    Vegan Bread Recipes
    Vegan Sourdough Recipes
    Vegan Cake Recipes
    Vegan Pie Recipes
    Vegan Cookie Recipes


    As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my full disclosure here.

    ยฉ 2022 Holy Cow Vegan