Sabudana (Tapioca) Vada Recipe

1. Soak the tapioca in water for 3-4 hours. The level of water should be just above the level of the tapioca.
   
2. Wash the samak rice (vrat ke chawal) and add 1/2 cup water to it.
   
3. Keep it on a medium flame for boiling.
   
4. Continue to boil till the level of water reaches the level of the rice grains, then reduce the heat to low and cover to cook till all the water is used up and the rice is cooked. Then turn off the gas and keep aside. (This procedure to cook samak rice is the same as we cook common white rice)
   
5. After 3-4 hours, the tapioca absorbs all the water and puffs up.
   
6. To the puffed tapioca, add the cooked samak rice prepared in step 4.
7. Boil, peel and mash the 2 potatoes and add to the tapioca. Add the roasted peanut powder*, 4-5 crushed green chilies, salt to taste, and 2 tsp sugar.
8. Mix well. Add little water and knead gently to make it like a dough.
   
9. Take little dough and shape into round balls with hands. Press to flatten a bit and make a hole in the center with one finger. (You may also shape them into round balls but in that case make the size smaller so that they get nicely cooked from within when deep frying.)
   
10. Use the rest of the dough and shape all the vadas as in step 9.
11. Heat oil in a pan for frying. Deep fry all the vadas on medium heat till a nice golden color is achieved.
12. Serve hot with peanut chutney, coconut chutney or ketchup.

*Roast peanuts in a pan on a medium flame, till some black spots start appearing on the outside. Let cool and then crush a little with hands to separate peels. Blow away the peels and grind the peanuts coarsely.