Vada Pav

'Vada Pav' is Mumbai's answer to America's Hamburgers, the iconic fast food of India, especially Mumbai. Once known as poor men's food is now relished by everyone as a famous street food. You will get Vada pav in each and every street corners, small eateries, and even served in long distant trains and on railway platforms. Several chains of fast food outlets in India specialise in Vada pav, like Jumbo King, MM Mithaiwala at Malad, Goli in central suburbs of Mumbai and Raja Rani in Valsad, Gujarat. However nothing can beat the Vada Pav available at Dheeraj - Stall near Mithibai-NM College, Juhu Mumbai. I have spend my entire college life eating these vada pav. Even now, If I happen to visit India, I will go to my college and have vada pav as they have their special chutneys and they spread yummy butter over the buns and then stuff the vada unlike other vendors who only stuff vada with chutneys inside the bun.
A simple snack consisting of a 'Vada' - Potato patty stuffed in a Pav - Bun bread and served with fried green chillies, garlic chutney, tamarind chutney and green chutney. There are no limits to how one would like their Vada Pav to be served.
International Chains like Mcdonalds faced problems to convert Vada pav eating Mumbaites. Still Vada pav retains its unique charm as Mumbaites prefer eating hot vada pav straight out from the kadhai, instead of frozen burgers served by these International Burger Joints.
I had made a close version of Vada pav available at food stall Dheeraj in our college.

Here is my entry for event Batata Vada organised by Mad Tea Party

Ingredients:
For Vadas
3 Boiled Potatoes
1 Tablespoon of Ginger-garlic paste
3-4 Curry leaves
1 Teaspoon of Mustard seeds
1 Teaspoon of Urad dal
3-4 Green chillies finely chopped
1 Teaspoon of Turmeric powder
1/2 Cup of chopped Corianders
Juice of 1/2 Lime
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

For Besan Batter
1/2 Cup of Besan (Bengal Gram Flour)
1 Teaspoon of Red Chilly powder
1 Teaspoon of Turmeric powder
1 Teaspoon of Coriander-Cumin seed powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Soda-bi-carbonate
Salt to taste
Water

5-6 Pav (Bun Bread)
2 Tablespoon of Butter
2 Tablespoon of Green Chutney
2 Tablespoon of Tamarind Chutney
2 Tablespoon of Chilli Garlic Chutney
2-3 Fried green Chillies

Method:
1. For Vadas, mash the potatoes, now take a deep vessel, heat the vessel with oil. Add mustard seeds and urad dal, once the seeds starts spluttering; add curry leaves, chopped green chillies and ginger garlic paste and look for 1 minute on a low flame.
2. Add mash potatoes, salt, Coriander, Lime juice and turmeric powder and mix properly. Cook for few minutes on a low flame.
3. Let the potatoe mixture cool down, once cool make small patty balls.

4. Make a batter, add all the ingredients to make a thick batter.
5. Take a deep kadhai and heat oil. Deep the potato vada (patty) in the besan batter and coat properly with the batter. Deep fry the vadas and keep it on a tissue paper to absorb the excess oil.

6. Take the pav (bun breads), make a slit in between. Spread butter, Tamarind chutney, chilli garlic chutney and green chutney on one side of the bread. Stuff the vadas in between and serve the hot lip smacking Vada Pav with
fried green chillies and Tomato ketchup