Sabudana Vada is a deep fried savoury snack made from sabudana (sago or tapioca pearls), boiled potatoes, roasted peanuts, green chillies, jeera, and salt. This dish is primarily from Maharashtra, India. Almost every hotel or sweet shop in Maharashtra (particularly Mumbai) has sabudana vada on their menus.
In India, Sabudana Vada is mostly prepared during fasts. Shravan and Navratri are observed as fast periods in the Hindu (Indian) tradition. Shravan is the fifth month of the Hindu calendar. This month is considered holy by Hindus, and many festivals are celebrated during this period, including Krishna Janmasthami, Raksha Bandhan, Nag Panchami, Narali Pournima, and Basava Panchami. Similarly, Navratri is a festival that is celebrated in the autumn every year. This festival is celebrated over many days in different parts of India. Some people also observe a fast during these days.
Sabudana (sago) is mostly consumed during fasts because of its carbohydrate content. It does not contain minerals or vitamins and thus is mostly paired with other ingredients. Sabudana vada is an easy recipe that is loved by a lot of people. It crispy exterior and soft and moist interior makes it totally delectable.
I generally do not observe fasts, but I make sabudana vadas often for breakfast or as an evening snack. It pairs very well with sweet curd or green chutney. Sabudana vadas should be consumed immediately after they are fried or they lose their crispiness.
The detailed and step by step Sabudana Vada recipe with photos is given below.

Those fast-special Sabudana Vadas done. The crispy exterior and moist interior makes these Sabudana vadas totally delectable.They taste excellent with green chutney or sweet dahi.
- 200 gram sabudana (sago or tapioca pearls)
- 3 medium-sized potatoes
- 1/2 cup peanuts (shingdana)
- 2 chopped green chillies (hari mirchi)
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
- salt (as required)
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Wash sabudana with water. Then, soak them in water for 4 to 5 hours or overnight (if preparing sabudana vada in the morning).
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After they become soft, drain all the water and keep them aside.
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Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker or container. Mash the boiled potatoes.
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In a kadhai or pan, roast the peanuts till they become crisp. Cool them, remove their skin, and grind them coarsely in a dry grinder. You can also directly use roasted peanuts.
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In a bowl, take the soaked sabudanas, mashed potatoes, chopped green chillies, roasted peanuts, cumin seeds, and salt. Mix the mixture well together.
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Take some mixture in your hands. Shape them into flat vadas.
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Make flat vadas of all the prepared mixture. Meanwhile, in a kadhai, heat oil for deep frying.
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After the oil has heated, add a small ball of the prepared mixture in the oil and fry it. If the ball doesn’t breaks, you can fry all the vadas.
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At a time, fry 3 to 4 vadas in the oil (depending on the size of the kadhai). After one side of the vada becomes golden brown in colour, flip the vada and fry till both sides become golden brown. Keep the flame medium while frying the vadas. The oil should not become cold.
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Remove the vadas on a tissue paper to absorb excess oil.
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Serve sabudana vadas with sweet dahi or green chutney.
1) Ensure that the sabudanas are soaked well. If the sabudanas are still hard, soak them in water for some more time. 2) While frying the vadas, the oil should be hot. If the oil becomes cold, the vadas will soak more oil.
Step by step Sabudana Vada Recipe with Photos
1) Soak the sabudana in water for at least 5 hours or overnight. Boil the potatoes and mash them. Ground the roasted peanuts coarsely in a dry grinder. In a bowl, take the soaked sabudana, mashed potatoes, chopped green chillies, roasted peanuts, cumin seeds, and salt. Mix the mixture well together.
2) Take some mixture in your hands and shape it into small flat vadas. Meanwhile, heat oil in a kadhai over medium flame.
3) After the oil gets heated, carefully add the flat vadas in the oil and deep fry them.
4) After one side of the vada becomes golden brown in colour, flip the vada and fry till both sides evenly become golden brown. Remove the vadas on a tissue paper to absorb excess oil.
5) Serve the piping hot vadas with sweet dahi or green chutney.
Do let me know in the comments below if your tried this recipe. Share and like this recipe on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Happy Cooking!
My favourite.
Thanks! for sharing this recipe. I will definitely give a try.
Welcome!Surely try the recipe and let me know how it turned out 🙂
Nice recipe , mentioned ,with step by step.keep sharing.
Sure, I will keep posting more recipes 🙂