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Crispy Air Fryer Sabudana Vada: Healthy & Delicious! Sabudana Vada: Enjoy this crispy, air-fried version of the classic Indian snack. Perfect for fasting days o

Crispy Air Fryer Sabudana Vada: Healthy & Delicious!

Sabudana Vada: Enjoy this crispy, air-fried version of the classic Indian snack. Perfect for fasting days or a healthy tea-time treat.
Prep Time 6 hours 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 6 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 6
Course: Snack
Cuisine: Indian
Calories: 180

Ingredients
  

  • ¾ cup sabudana or sago pearls
  • ¾ cup water
  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons boiled & mashed potatoes
  • ½ cup roasted peanuts (crushed coarsely)
  • 1 green chilly (finely chopped)
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped coriander
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • ½ - ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon sugar

Method
 

  1. Wash & soak sabudana in ¾ cup water for 6-8 hours or overnight. After the soaking hours, the sabudana will soak up all the water and fluff up. See note 1.
  2. Take soaked sabudana in a large bowl, add rest of the ingredients except oil & mix well.
  3. Preheat the airfryer at 190C.
  4. Grease your palm with oil, take a golf sized sabudana mixture on your palm and flatten it to form round discs or vadas. Repeat till all vadas are formed.
  5. Brush the airfryer mesh with oil, place vadas and brush some oil over the vadas. Avoid overcrowding and make sure that there is some gap between the vadas.
  6. Airfry the vadas for 8 minutes at 190C, flip them once, brush with oil and air fry them at 200 C for 9 more minutes. They turn crisp once they cool down.
  7. Repeat the same process for all the remaining vadas.

Notes

- Ensure sabudana pearls are perfectly soaked: they should be soft and mash easily between your fingers, without any hard centers. If they're under-soaked, the vadas will be hard.
- Don't overcrowd the air fryer basket. Cook in batches to ensure even cooking and crispness. Overcrowding traps steam and prevents browning.
- For a burst of flavor, add a tiny pinch of ginger-garlic paste (if not observing fasting rules) or finely grated ginger to the mixture. My personal trick is to use a little rock salt for an authentic fasting flavor.
Nutrition information is an estimate, calculated automatically. Values vary with brands, substitutions and portion sizes.