South African Vada or Vaade is a popular South Indian tea time snack made using split pea lentils, onion, spices and coriander. Vada is mostly made for religious prayers and ceremonies and offered as prasad in temples.

It’s also a perfect accompaniment for tea and coffee. Vada is a simple, easy to make recipe packed with so much flavour, taste and historical significance.

Vada is a mixture of split pea lentils (soaked overnight in water), mixed with spices and herbs which then is deeply fried into a crispy snack. The coarse texture of the dough gives it a crispy exterior.

Warning: Make extra, it’s unbelievably addictive too.

I haven’t air fried them so if you have cooked it that way, share your comments with me. I’d love to hear how it turns out.

I have heard of people adding mashed banana to the mixture before frying them, I’m yet to try that variation. If you have, please drop me a comment.

Vada or Vaade

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Cook Time 3 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Ingredients

  

• 500ml split peas (soaked in water overnight)
• 3 dried red chillies (soaked with split pea)
• 3 green chillies (finely diced)
• Handful of freshly chopped coriander
• 2 tsp roasted cumin and coriander seeds (roast seeds in a pan for a minute without grease)
• 1 tsp sugar
• Salt to taste (I added 2 tsp salt)
• 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 onion (finely diced)
• 1 sprig spring onion (sliced)(optional)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder (optional)
• Oil for deep frying

Instructions

 

• Roast and coarsely grind the cumin and fennel seeds together.
• Drain the water from the split pea lentils and red chillies. Add it to your food processor bowl.
• Pulse together the split peas and red chillies in the food processor until the mixture resembles a bread crumb texture.
• Empty the mixture into a large bowl. Add in the green chilli, salt sugar, cumin and fennel powder, ginger and garlic paste, onion, spring onion, coriander and baking powder if using
• Use a spatula and combine everything well together.
• You want to create a mixture of the kind that when you hold the mixture into the palm of your hands, you’re able to form a ball.
• Place a tablespoon of the mixture into the palm of your hand and pat it flat. It should be round, smaller than your palm and about 5mm in thickness. Make a dent in the centre almost like the hole in a donut.
• Try to keep the vadas all the same size.
• Fry in hot oil until reddish brown in colour. The mixture is loose and crumbly so take care when placing it in the oil.
• Turn the vada once over during cooking and place onto an absorbent paper towel to drain any excess oil.
• It usually takes between 2-3 minutes to cook depending on the heat of the oil.
• Best served hot. 

Notes

Notes:

You can use extra onions if you’re omitting the spring onions. 

You can use more or less chillies depending on the heat you prefer.

I prefer the vadas hot which means that it’s freshly fried. 

It doesn’t taste the same the next day.

Fresh is best.