Baked Maddur Vada – a crispy, crunchy baked version (oven and air fryer) of the quintessential snack Maddur Vada, a deep fried spicy and super crispy fritter from the town of Maddur in the southern part of India, mostly enjoyed as a snack with evening tea or coffee! Long post alert but please bear with me as this snack has a very interesting and long history! If desperate to check out the recipe, please scroll down now! Jump to Recipe India is famous for its plethora of snacks with a history which sometimes dates back hundreds of years! Everyone is familiar with Indian samosa, but did you know that it actually originated from Central Asia; from Egypt to Libya and then from Central Asia to India? Likewise, Jalebi, that deep orange/yellow deep fried spiral or coiled Indian sweet, dunked in a sugary sweet syrup is actually from Western Asia, specifically Iran and was brought to India by Turkish settlers to India, and now, we have made it our own! But Maddur Vada is our very own, indigenous south Indian snack – a deep fried savory fritter with spices, onions, rice flour and semolina, originated and famous even today in the town of Maddur in Karnataka, south India!
WHAT IS MADDUR VADA?
Vada is a savory deep fried Indian snack made using lentils; either soft like urad dal/white split lentil vadas or crispy like masala vadas. But Maddur Vada is a special snack which not everyone is familiar with. This does not contain any lentils but a mixture of rice flour, semolina and plain flour (or whole wheat/multigrain flour as in mine) along with onions, green chilies and spices. The best part of this crispy baked fritter are the sweet bits of caramelized onions in every bite with of course the spicy kick you get!
HISTORY OF MADDUR VADA:
It has an interesting history. Apparently, this snack used to be sold at the Maddur railway station (Maddur is a small town in the southern Indian state of Karnataka situated between Mysore and Bangalore) in a small restaurant at the railway station. During the early 20th century, when trains plying between Bangalore/Bengaluru and Mysore/Mysuru were hauled by steam engines, the trains used to stop in Maddur to fill up on water from the nearby River Shamsha. That is when this entrepreneur/restaurateur named Ramachandra Budhya, had a huge sale of his idlis and vadas to passengers. But one day, when he had run out of other dishes to serve the passengers, he decided to just to mix some leftover ingredients he had, pressed them into flat discs and deep fried them. This snack sold out in no time and people were begging for more! Thus was born the now famous “Maddur Vada”! This was nearly 100 years back and his family ran his restaurant until 1948. Since then another family, the Hebbars, have take over and now serve this delicacy at the now famous Maddur Tiffany’s restaurant (one of my favorite!) in the town of Maddur which travelers including myself, do not miss to stop and partake of their crisp dosas, soft idlis and of course their famous Maddur Vadas on the way to Mysore or Bangalore. Unfortunately, I have not tasted their authentic Maddur Vada (a mistake I will rectify as soon as it is safe to travel and enjoy in restaurants!), as it is a fried snack and I am not too fond of the oily clones I have tasted around Mysore, my hometown!
BAKED MADDUR VADA:
As mentioned, Maddur Vada is a deep fried savory fritter/snack. We (my husband and I) have been trying to reduce fried snacks as much as possible but I have always wanted to make this at home; hygiene and all you know! So, when our gourmet Face book group “Healthy Wellthy Cuisines” with similar minded food bloggers decided “Monsoon Time” as the fortnightly theme for this month, Maddur Vada popped in my mind as vada, pakoras, fritters and anything deep fried is associated with monsoons, rain and thunder along with soups etc.! But keeping our health in mind, I decided to bake it in an oven! It takes a bit longer than frying, but hey, I was willing to take the risk and try baking and guess what, I was totally, totally flabbergasted, ecstatic and thrilled that it came out super, super crispy, tasty and absolutely delicious! Recently, I tried air frying them too and what do you know? It not only took much less time, but came out super crispy and tastier! My family (and me including) is so in love with the air fryer version that I will make it no other way! You can say these savory vadas (fry, bake or air fry) are like my baked Indian savory and spicy cookie, Khara Biscuits!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR MADDUR VADA:
If you are baking/frying/air frying, the ingredients are the same. All the ingredients are what most of you will have in your pantry: Rice flour – this is what gives it the crispy texture. Semolina/suji/rava – another ingredient that adds the crispiness and the texture too! Flour – actually I used a dash of all-purpose flour/maida as in the original maddur vada for the first batch but made it so many times later on using whole wheat flour and multigrain flour! No more refined plain flour/maida for me. Now, the main ingredient which gives it that uber flavor (and try and not avoid it)– thinly sliced onions; specifically red onions which caramelize and turn into those sweet, crispy bites of heaven while frying or baking! Green chilies/jalapenos/serrano peppers –finely chopped Curry leaves –chop them finely. You can omit if you cannot find these easily. Red chili powder/cayenne powder for the spice or heat and if using Kashmiri red chili powder, adds a lovely red color to the vadas Sesame seeds – white sesame seeds; this I saw in the original recipe, hence I decided to add that too! Oil - any oil. You will need just a couple of tablespoons. Yes, these maddur vadas, if baking or air frying will have only that much oil! Win, win isn’t it?
Optional ingredients:
Finely chopped cashew nuts (or peanuts) Finely chopped dry coconut/kopra Just mix these into a dough using a bit of water, make small golf sized balls, flatten them into thin discs and deep fry as done in the original Maddur Vada version, bake in a hot oven or air fry until crispy and crunchy! As mentioned, I decided to bake it and voila! Don’t they look super duper yumm? One bite into it and me and my husband were enjoying the whole lot with a cuppa chai!
Once they were nearly polished off (only 3 were left) and my husband said “A 1 snack”, I knew this recipe is a keeper!
MADDUR VADAS IN AN AIR FRYER (Updated July 23, 2021):
My air fryer to the rescue again for delicious, healthy, oil-free snacks! I baked these at 350F and they came out super crispy and yumm in no time! The first batch took 15 minutes (flip halfway) but the second was ready in 12 minutes! Don’t they look super delicious? No frying for me; from now on, making this Baked Maddur Vada again and again in an oven or air fryer to enjoy as a snack to munch on any time; especially during this monsoon season (with a cuppa chai and the sound of rain pitter pattering on my roof), to serve at parties, to pack in my picnic bag or to make and share with family and friends! Do give this super easy baked/air fried version of Maddur Vada a go and if you do, please do not forget to rate and leave a comment below. You can also share your version on Instagram using @curryandvanilla16 to ping me (or #curryandvanilla16) or on my Facebook page!
MONSOON TIME @Healthy Wellthy Cuisines:
Contributing this to our Face Book group Healthy Wellthy Cuisines’ this month’s theme “Monsoon Time” as suggested by dear friend and fellow blogger Poonam Bachhav who shares her culinary expertise and mouthwatering creations at poonambachhav.blogspot.com/. Here are the monsoon special goodies shared by others in the group:
Beet and Potata Tikkis by Preethi Ram Ladoo by Swaty Rice Cutlet by Narmadha Garlic Rasam by Poonam Paneer Pakodas by Shalu Air Fryer Vegetable Pakoras by Jayashree Masoor Dal Pakoras by Sasmita Moong Dal Pakoras by Ruchi
Do check it out foodies! You are sure to find delicious and healthy recipes to make for your family! Now, let us see how to make these crispy and delicious BAKED MADDUR VADAS:
STEP-WISE INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE BAKED MADDUR VADA:
In a mixing bowl, add the following ingredients: onions, green chilies, curry leaves, sesame seeds, red chili powder and salt; mix well using your hands to coat the ingredients well. Cook Time: 40 minutes
½ cup sliced onions (about ½ inch slices) 2 green chilies, finely chopped 2 tbsp chopped curry leaves 2 tsp white sesame seeds 2 tbsp chopped cashew nuts (optional) 2 tbsp chopped dry coconut (optional) 1 tsp red chili powder/cayenne pepper powder 1 tsp salt 1 ½ tbsp hot oil (any odorless oil) ½ cup rice flour ¼ cup suji/semolina 2 tbsp maida/all-purpose flour ¼ cup water Oil for basting the vadas
Instructions Notes Addition of cashew nuts and dry coconut is optional as is the sesame seeds. Instead of cashew nuts, you can stir in chopped peanuts too! For a richer vada, instead of hot oil, use hot ghee or butter; but then it does not remain vegan. If you love to taste the original vada, deep fry these fritters!
Set aside for 5 to 7 minutes to allow the moisture from the onions to be released. After 7 minutes, when the mixture has turned a bit moist, add the rice flour, suji and maida/all-purpose flour along with 1 ½ tbsp of hot oil, chopped cashew nuts and chopped dry coconut. Stir and mix using your hands to form crumb like mixture.
Now add ¼ cup water and mix again thoroughly to form a soft dough; just gather to form a dough. Set aside this for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Centigrade . Oil or grease a baking pan with oil. Make small golf ball sized dough balls.
Between sheets of butter paper or parchment paper, press each dough ball evenly to form a flat disc not too thick and not too thick, using a rolling pin or just the palms or fingers of your hand. Gently remove and place on baking sheet. Brush all the vada discs with a bit of oil and bake in preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes.
Remove, cool slightly to let the vadas harden a bit. Enjoy spicy, crispy, crunchy and delicious south Indian delight Maddur Vadas, not fried but baked, with your evening chai/kapi (coffee) etc.! Store leftovers in airtight container to enjoy for a day or two more! Happy Baking!
PIN here for later:
If you like my posts and recipes, do not forget to Pin, Share, comment in the box below or like my Facebook page Don’t forget to follow me on: Facebook @ curryandvanilla Pinterest @ curryandvanilla Instagram @ curryandvanilla16 Twitter @ curryandvanilla Google Plus @ Vanitha Bhat Have fun cooking, eating and sharing!!!!
