Cauliflower Vada recipe | cauliflower pakora recipe | vada recipe

Cauliflower vada is a crispy and delicious snack made with grated cauliflower florets, gram flour (besan), spices, and herbs. Unlike regular vada, it is slightly thinner, crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. These vadas are incredibly tasty and melt in your mouth when freshly taken out of hot oil. I’ve also included an easy recipe for vada chaat with green chutney and instant sweet-and-sour chutney, which pair perfectly with the vada. Do give this a try!

1. Use fresh cauliflower:
   Always use fresh cauliflower for the best taste and texture. You can grate the cauliflower or use a food processor to achieve a fine texture. For added nutrition and flavor, feel free to include ingredients like grated carrots, spinach, or your choice of spices.
2. Enhance with fresh masala:
   I recommend using freshly ground masala to elevate the flavor of the vada. You can adjust the amount of masala to suit your taste preferences.
3. Use poha powder or cornflour for crispiness:
   Adding poha powder to the dough helps absorb excess moisture and makes the vada crispy. If you don’t have poha powder, cornflour can be used as a substitute.
4. Incorporate gram flour (besan) gradually:
   Use gram flour to bind the vada mixture, adding it gradually. Avoid adding too much flour, as this can make the vadas hard once they cool down.
5. Frying technique:
   Fry the vadas on medium heat until they turn golden brown. For extra crispiness, fry them a second time on high heat. However, this second frying step is optional.
6. Serving Suggestions:Cauliflower vadas taste best when slightly spicy and are served hot with spicy green chutney and sweet-and-sour chutney. Enjoy them as a snack or as part of a flavorful vada chaat.

• Pakoda recipes collection
• South indian recipe collection
• Snacks recipes collection

Recipe video 

Cauliflower Vada recipe | cauliflower pakora recipe | vada recipe

Author Nehas Cook Book

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Share Email

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Course chaat, Snack

Cuisine Indian

Servings 20 vada

Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

For vada

• ▢ 2 cup grated cauliflower
• ▢ 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• ▢ 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ▢ 1 tsp fennel seeds
• ▢ ½ tsp ajwain
• ▢ ¼ tsp black peppercorn
• ▢ 2-3 green chilli
• ▢ 1 inch ginger
• ▢ 5-6 garlic cloves
• ▢ Some curry leaves
• ▢ 2 tbsp white sesame seeds
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ 1 tsp red chilli powder
• ▢ 1 tsp dry mango powder
• ▢ ½ tsp garam masala
• ▢ ½ cup chopped onion
• ▢ ½ cup coriander leaves
• ▢ 1 cup poha powder
• ▢ 1 cup gram flour - besan or as required
• ▢ Oil for frying

For green chutney

• ▢ ½ cup coriander leaves
• ▢ ¼ cup mint leaves
• ▢ 2-3 green chilli
• ▢ 1 inch ginger
• ▢ Some curry leaves
• ▢ Pinch of salt
• ▢ ½ tsp black salt
• ▢ 1 tbsp roasted chana dal
• ▢ 1 tsp dry mango powder
• ▢ ½ tsp sugar
• ▢ Water as required

For khatti-meethi amchur chutney

• ▢ 1 tbsp dry mango - amchur powder
• ▢ ½ tsp black salt
• ▢ ½ tsp kashmiri red chilli powder
• ▢ ½ tsp roasted cumin powder
• ▢ ½ tsp chaat masala
• ▢ ¼ cup jaggery
• ▢ 1 cup water
• ▢ 1 tbsp arrowroot - tapkir powder + water mixture
• ▢ 1 tsp watermelon seeds - optional

For assembling vada chaat

• ▢ Fried vada
• ▢ Green chutney
• ▢ Khatti-meethi chutney
• ▢ Dahi
• ▢ Chaat masala

Instructions

Making Cauliflower Vada

• Cut medium-sized cauliflower into large florets.
• In a mixing bowl, add cauliflower florets, some hot water, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of turmeric. Mix well and soak the cauliflower florets in the water for 10 minutes.
• Remove the water completely using a sieve.
• Using a grater with large holes, grate the cauliflower florets. You need 2 cups of grated cauliflower.
• In a pan, add 1 tbsp coriander seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp fennel seeds, ½ tsp ajwain, and ¼ tsp black peppercorns. Roast on a low flame until aromatic.
• Transfer the roasted spices to a mixer jar. Add 2–3 green chilies, 1-inch ginger, 5–6 garlic cloves, and some curry leaves. Grind coarsely without adding water.
• Add the ground masala to the grated cauliflower mixture. Then, add 2 tbsp sesame seeds, salt to taste, 1 tsp red chili powder, 1 tsp dry mango powder, ½ tsp garam masala, ½ cup chopped onion, and some coriander leaves. Mix well.
• In the mixer jar, grind 1 cup of poha into a fine powder. Add the powdered poha to the mixture and mix well.
• Gradually add 1 cup of besan and bind the vada dough.
• Grease your hands slightly with oil and take a small portion of the dough. Flatten the dough ball between your palms to make slightly flat and thin vadas. Repeat for all vadas.
• Heat oil on medium flame and fry the vadas until they turn slightly brown.
• Increase the flame to high and fry the vadas again for 1–2 minutes until they become super crispy.
• Crispy cauliflower vadas are ready.

Making Green Chutney

• In a mixer jar, add ½ cup coriander leaves, ¼ cup mint leaves, 2–3 green chilies, 1-inch ginger, some curry leaves, a pinch of salt, ½ tsp black salt, 1 tbsp roasted chana dal, 1 tsp dry mango powder, and ½ tsp sugar.
• Add some water and grind into a smooth chutney.
• Green chutney is ready.

Making Khatti-Meethi Amchur Chutney

• In a pan, add amchur powder, black salt, red chili powder, roasted cumin powder, chaat masala, jaggery, and water. Mix well.
• Place the pan on the stove and cook until the jaggery is completely dissolved.
• In a bowl, mix arrowroot (tapkir) powder with water. Gradually add this mixture to the chutney while stirring.
• The chutney will thicken immediately. Turn off the heat.
• Transfer the chutney to a bowl and add watermelon seeds.
• Khatti-meethi chutney is ready.

Assembling Vada Chaat

• Place some vadas on a plate.
• Spread dahi (yogurt), green chutney, and khatti-meethi chutney on top.
• Sprinkle some chaat masala.
• Serve and enjoy!

Notes

1. Cut the cauliflower into large florets.
2. Soaking cauliflower florets in hot water with salt and turmeric helps to clean them completely.
3. Grate the cauliflower florets using a grater with large holes.
4. Lightly roast the dry masala to enhance its flavor.
5. Grind the masala coarsely; do not grind it finely.
6. Poha powder absorbs water from the vada mixture and makes the vada crispy.
7. You can use cornflour instead of poha powder.
8. Add gram flour gradually until the vada mixture binds. Do not add too much flour to the vada mixture.
9. Fry the vada on medium flame.
10. Fry the vada a second time on high flame to achieve a crispy texture.
11. Vada taste great when it prepared spicy and serve hot

Subscribe to our Youtube ChannelClick here to subscribe our Youtube Channel and stay updated with our latest video recipes