Crispy Air Fryer Sabudana Vada with Peanuts and No-Onion Cilantro Mint Chutney
Air fryer sabudana vada with a crisp shell and chewy centre, made with potato and roasted peanuts and served with a no-onion, no-garlic cilantro mint chutney.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Rest
- 5 h
- Serves
- 4
Crispy Air Fryer Sabudana Vada with Peanuts and No-Onion Cilantro Mint Chutney is a vegan snack recipe made with sabudana (medium tapioca pearls), water, potatoes. It takes 65 minutes of hands-on time, plus 5 hours resting, serves 4, and each serving has 381 calories, 8 g of protein and 5 g of fiber.
These tapioca pearl patties get their crunch from a light brushing of oil and a hot air fryer instead of a pot of frying oil, which makes them an easy Navratri vrat snack. The two things that matter most are soaking the sabudana in just enough water so it turns soft but not wet, and using potatoes that have cooled and dried before mashing. Coarsely ground roasted peanuts soak up any leftover moisture and help the patties hold together. The chutney skips onion and garlic, so the whole plate fits a fasting day.
Ingredients
Vada
- 1 cup152 gsabudana (medium tapioca pearls)
- ¾ cup178 gwater, for soaking, just enough to barely cover the rinsed pearls
- 2 medium426 gpotatoes, boiled, cooled and peeled, starchy types like russet hold the patties together best
- ½ cup73 groasted unsalted peanuts, coarsely ground
- 1 medium14 gjalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 tbsp6 gfresh ginger, finely grated
- 1 tsp2.1 gcumin seeds
- ¼ cup4 gcilantro, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp15 glime juice
- ¾ tsp4.5 gfine salt (sendha namak if fasting)
- 1 tbsp14 gneutral oil, for brushing
Cilantro Mint Chutney
- 1 cup16 gcilantro, leaves and tender stems, packed
- ½ cup23 gmint leaves, packed
- ½ medium7 gjalapeño, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp2 gfresh ginger, chopped
- 1 tbsp9.1 groasted unsalted peanuts, gives the chutney body so it does not separate
- ¼ tsp0.5 gcumin seeds
- 1½ tbsp23 glime juice
- ¼ tsp1.5 gfine salt (sendha namak if fasting)
- 3 tbsp45 gcold water
Kit: air fryer, fine-mesh sieve, blender or small food processor, pastry brush
Tips
- Sabudana brands vary in how much water they absorb. If the pearls still have a hard centre after soaking, sprinkle on 2 tablespoons of water and wait another 30 minutes rather than flooding the bowl.
- Warm or freshly boiled potatoes make a wet, sticky dough. Boil them ahead and chill them if you can.
- Do not skip the oil on the patties. Tapioca starch dries out pale and leathery in the air fryer without a thin coat of fat.
- Fasting rules differ between families. Swap in sendha namak for regular salt, and leave out the cilantro or any other ingredient your household avoids during vrat.
Swap ideas
- Use 1 or 2 green Thai or serrano chiles instead of the jalapeño
- Sharper, more traditional heat. Start with one and taste the dough.
- Use lemon juice instead of lime juice
- Slightly softer, less floral tartness in both the vada and the chutney.
- Use sweet potato for half of the potato
- A sweeter vada that browns faster. The dough is softer, so add an extra tablespoon of ground peanuts.
- Stir 2 tbsp coconut yogurt into the chutney
- A creamier, milder dip that tames the chile heat.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
381kcal per serving
Everything else · 4 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 1.9 g 10%
- Sugars
- 3.6 g
- Sodium
- 597 mg 26%
- Potassium
- 683 mg 15%
- Calcium
- 57 mg 4%
- Iron
- 3 mg 17%
- Vitamin C
- 32 mg 36%
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg 0%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Tapioca, pearl, dry, Beverages, water, tap, drinking, Potatoes, flesh and skin, raw, Peanuts, all types, dry-roasted, without salt, Peppers, jalapeno, raw, Ginger root, raw, Spices, cumin seed, Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw, Lime juice, raw, Salt, table, Oil, canola, Spearmint, fresh
Method
Rinse the sabudana in a sieve under cold water, rubbing gently, until the water runs mostly clear. Tip into a wide bowl, add the 3/4 cup water so the pearls are just barely covered, and soak for 5 hours or overnight. They are ready when a pearl squashes flat between your fingers with no hard white centre. Drain off any water still sitting in the bowl and leave the pearls in the sieve for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, boil the whole unpeeled potatoes in salted water until a knife slides in easily, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain, let them cool completely so the steam escapes, then peel and mash or grate them until smooth with no lumps.
Pulse the 1/2 cup peanuts in a blender or crush them in a bag with a rolling pin to a coarse, sandy meal with a few small pieces left. Stop before they turn oily.
Add the drained sabudana, mashed potato, ground peanuts, jalapeño, ginger, cumin seeds, chopped cilantro, lime juice and salt to a large bowl. Mix and knead with your hand for about a minute until it comes together as a dough that holds its shape when pressed. If it feels sticky or loose, work in another tablespoon or two of ground peanuts.
With lightly oiled palms, shape the mixture into 12 patties about 2 1/2 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick, pressing firmly and smoothing any cracks at the edges. Brush both sides with oil.
Preheat the air fryer to 390°F (200°C) for 3 minutes and lightly oil the basket. Arrange the patties in a single layer with space between them, working in two batches if needed. Air fry for 10 minutes, flip, brush any dry spots with a little more oil, and cook for 6 to 8 minutes more, until deep golden with crisp, speckled edges.
While the vada cook, blend the chutney cilantro, mint, jalapeño, ginger, peanuts, cumin seeds, lime juice, salt and cold water until smooth, scraping down the sides once. Taste and adjust with more salt or lime, and add another spoonful of water if it is too thick to dip.
Serve the vada right away while the shells are crisp, with the chutney on the side.
Storage: Best eaten within 20 minutes of cooking, as the vada turn chewy as they cool. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days and re-crisp in the air fryer at 375°F for 4 to 5 minutes. Shaped, uncooked patties keep covered in the fridge for up to 24 hours. The chutney keeps for 3 days in a sealed jar in the fridge, though its colour will dull.
Questions
- How much protein is in crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney?
- Each of the 4 servings has 8 g of protein, 5 g of fiber and 381 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney take to make?
- 25 minutes of prep and 40 minutes of cooking, so 65 minutes of hands-on time, plus 5 hours of unattended resting.
- Can you make crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney ahead?
- Best eaten within 20 minutes of cooking, as the vada turn chewy as they cool. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days and re-crisp in the air fryer at 375°F for 4 to 5 minutes. Shaped, uncooked patties keep covered in the fridge for up to 24 hours. The chutney keeps for 3 days in a sealed jar in the fridge, though its colour will dull.
- What can I substitute in crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney?
- Use 1 or 2 green Thai or serrano chiles instead of the jalapeño — sharper, more traditional heat. start with one and taste the dough.. Use lemon juice instead of lime juice — slightly softer, less floral tartness in both the vada and the chutney.. Use sweet potato for half of the potato — a sweeter vada that browns faster. the dough is softer, so add an extra tablespoon of ground peanuts.. Stir 2 tbsp coconut yogurt into the chutney — a creamier, milder dip that tames the chile heat..
- Does crispy air fryer sabudana vada with peanuts and no-onion cilantro mint chutney contain peanuts?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes peanuts, in some cases as an optional ingredient you can leave out. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published October 22, 2026 ·Indian