Sharanya Raghunath
- Sep 10, 2021
- 3 min read

Sweet Potato Sliders

Updated: Oct 5, 2021

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Sweet potato sliders...AKA Sweet Potato Vada Pav!

My favorite part of food blogging is pushing the boundaries of what is accepted as Indian food. Vada Pav is the most popular street food in Mumbai. There are Vada Pav stalls at every street corner. It was originally invited to serve as a quick and inexpensive snack for workers traveling long distances via the local train system. Vada Pav is often known as the Indian burger...Vada translates to a fried ball of dough/stuffing, and Pav translates to a dinner roll. In my mind, a Vada Pav is more like a slider than a burger.

The Vada is made with potatoes, coated in chickpea batter and deep fried to perfection. The Vada is tucked in the Pav and served with green and tamrind chutney. For extra hear, a garlic-chili dry rub is added. On Google, you can find thousands of Vada Pav recipes, but this recipe incorporates sweet potatoes. It is a fun surprise when you bite into the Vada and the sweet potato caramelizes perfectly when fried.

This recipe makes 5-6 Vada Pavs

Ingredients

Sweet Potato Fritters/Vadas

1 Large Sweet Potato

1 Thai Green Chili

1/4 C of Finely Chopped Onions

4-5 Curry Leaves

1/2 Tsp of Turmeric

1/2 Tsp of Mustard Seeds

1/2 Tsp of Coriander Powder

1/2 Tsp of Cumin Powder

1/2 Inch of Ginger (Finely Grated)

A pinch of Asafoetida

Salt to taste

1 Tbs of Sesame Oil

Batter

(Cut this recipe in half if you are only making sweet potato Vadas)

1 C of Chickpea Flour

1 Tbs of Rice Flour

1/2 Tsp of Red Chili Powder

1/2 Tsp of Turmeric

3/4 Tsp of Salt

1/2 -3/4 C of Water

Toppings

Green Chutney

Tamarind Chutney

Finely chopped onions (optional)

Garlic-Red Chili Dry Rub

Oil for Frying

Dinner Rolls

Methods

You can cook the sweet potato in 2 ways: In the microwave using a microwave safe cloth bag or cooking it in boiling water for 20-25 minutes. Once the potato is cooked, peel the skin and mash it. If you are using the boiling water method, I would recommend peeling the sweet potato before cooking.
In a fry pan, add the sesame oil and let it heat for 30-60 seconds. Next add the mustard seeds and let them pop.
Once the seeds pop, add curry leaves and asfoetida. Let it cook for 20 seconds.
Add the chopped onions and let the onions cook down. Add salt, turmeric, cumin, coriander, and ginger. Let the spices cook for 1-2 minutes or until the aroma is released in the oil.
Add the mashed sweet potato to the fry pan and cook for approximately 8 minutes, until all ingredients are well combined. Let the sweet potato mixture cool down while you make the batter.

For the batter, mix the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add water slowly, making sure to mix continuously. You want a thick consistency like pancake batter. The batter should be smooth without any clumps. Set the batter aside.

Set up your oil for frying in a deep fry pan or kadai. You can also use a fryer if you have one.
Once the sweet potato mixture has cooled, roll them into 2 inch balls and set aside.

Before you start frying, make sure the oil is hot. To check, drop some batter into the oil and if it bubbles and rise to the top, you are ready to fry.
Dip each sweet potato ball into the chickpea batter and coat well. Drop them into the oil and fry till they are golden brown. Set them aside on a paper towel to soak up extra oil.

To arrange your Vada Pavs, split the dinner roll horizontally. Add the green chutney to one side and the tamarind chutney to the other side of the roll.

Tuck the vada between the pav. To the vada, add extra onions and the dry garlic-chili rub for extra heat.
Enjoy with some chai!

If you are interested in the traditional Vada Pav recipe, made the potato mixture using the following ingredients. You will have enough batter leftover from the sweet potato Vada Pav recipe. Follow the same steps to make the regular Vada Pav.