Main · Fried

Vada Pav

Name: Vada Pav recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4 (8 vada pav) servings
Ingredients: For the vada filling: 4 medium potatoes, boiled and mashed, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 8–10 curry leaves, 1 tablespoon paste of ginger, garlic and green chilli, ½ teaspoon turmeric, salt, 2 tablespoons chopped coriander, a squeeze of lemon; For the batter: 1 cup (100 g) gram flour (besan), ¼ teaspoon turmeric, ½ teaspoon chilli powder, a pinch of baking soda, salt, about ½ cup water, added a spoonful at a time; Oil for deep-frying; 8 pav (soft bread rolls); Dry garlic chutney: dry-roast 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut with 8 garlic cloves and 2 tablespoons chilli powder until fragrant, then grind with salt. Green chutney: blend 1 cup coriander, ½ cup mint, 2 green chillies, lemon juice and salt with a splash of water.

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Often called Mumbai's answer to a burger — for a fraction of the price.

A spiced, deep-fried potato fritter stuffed into a soft bread bun with chutneys, sold from carts across Mumbai as a cheap, filling meal for commuters and workers.

Why it's made this way: Mumbai's fast-paced commuter culture shaped the dish — quick to make, cheap, and eaten standing at the cart, no seating required.

What is Vada Pav?

Vada pav is a Mumbai street food: a spiced potato fritter (vada) coated in gram-flour batter and deep-fried, then tucked into a soft bread roll (pav) with chutneys. It is cheap, filling and eaten standing up at carts and stalls by commuters and workers across the city.

It is often called Mumbai's burger, though it is vegetarian and entirely its own thing.

How to make vada pav

Serves 4 (8 vada pav) · prep 30 min · cook 30 min

Ingredients

For the vada filling: 4 medium potatoes, boiled and mashed, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 8–10 curry leaves, 1 tablespoon paste of ginger, garlic and green chilli, ½ teaspoon turmeric, salt, 2 tablespoons chopped coriander, a squeeze of lemon
For the batter: 1 cup (100 g) gram flour (besan), ¼ teaspoon turmeric, ½ teaspoon chilli powder, a pinch of baking soda, salt, about ½ cup water, added a spoonful at a time
Oil for deep-frying
8 pav (soft bread rolls)
Dry garlic chutney: dry-roast 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut with 8 garlic cloves and 2 tablespoons chilli powder until fragrant, then grind with salt. Green chutney: blend 1 cup coriander, ½ cup mint, 2 green chillies, lemon juice and salt with a splash of water.

Method

Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds and curry leaves, then the ginger-garlic-chilli paste and turmeric. Add the mashed potatoes, salt, coriander and lemon juice and mix well. Cool, then roll into 8 round balls and flatten slightly.
Make the batter: whisk the gram flour, turmeric, chilli powder, baking soda and salt with the water, adding it gradually, into a thick, smooth batter that coats the back of a spoon.
Heat oil for deep-frying to about 175 °C. Dip each potato ball in the batter, let the excess drip off, and lower it gently into the oil, away from you.
Fry in batches for 3–4 minutes, turning, until golden brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels.
Slice each pav almost through, spread the green chutney inside on one side and the dry garlic chutney on the other, then place a hot vada inside and press lightly. Serve straight away, often with a fried green chilli.

Tips

The potato mixture should be firm enough to hold its shape; if it is too wet, the vada will break in the oil.
Keep the batter thick, so it clings to the potato and gives a crisp coating.
Let the oil come back to temperature between batches.
Dry garlic chutney is what makes vada pav taste like Mumbai; make a batch and keep it for weeks.