If you’ve ever visited Kerala or eaten at a Keralan restaurant, chances are you’ve seen (or devoured) Pappada Vada, a golden, crispy snack made by deep-frying spiced papads in a flavourful rice batter.
These crunchy snacks are irresistible for anyone who loves bold South Indian flavours. I can’t get enough of them when I make them! They’re incredibly easy to make at home with just a few pantry staples. In this post, I’ll cover everything you need to know to make Pappada Vada at home!
What is Pappada Vada?
Pappada Vada is a popular snack from Kerala, made by dipping urad dal papads (pappadam) in a spicy rice batter and deep frying them until crispy and golden. The batter is flavoured with chilli powder, turmeric, cumin seeds, curry leaves, and sometimes crushed garlic or ginger.
The result? A crunchy, spicy, addictive snack that’s perfect with a cup of hot chai or cold beer or two.
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Ingredients
These are the ingredients I used to make my pappada vada. Feel free to experiment and try others as suggested below. The best papads to use are the thin Keralan style plain papads. I only had black pepper padads on hand which were a bit trickier to use but I got there in the end.
- Basmati rice
- Water for blending
- Turmeric
- Kashmiri chilli powder
- black sesame seeds
- Cumin seeds
- Dried chilli flakes (optional)
- Salt
- Papads
- Oil for deep frying
See recipe card for quantities.
Step by step photos
Check out my step by step photographs below. These should help ensure you get your pappada vada just right!
- Step 1: Blend the rice with a little water until smooth. You do not need much water. I used about 70ml (1/4 cup) but you might need a drop more depending on your blender. More detailed instructions in the recipe card below.
- Step 2: You want to blend the rice until it is creamy smooth, like double (heavy) cream.
- Step 3: Add the spices and sesame seeds to the batter. See recipe card below for what I used and other ideas.
- Step 4: Stir the spices and sesame seeds right into the batter.
- Step 5: Dip a papad into the spiced batter, ensuring that it is completely coated. It might be a bit flimsy so be careful not to tear it. Use two hands if you need to.
- Step 6: Heat your oil over a medium-high heat. If you add a small piece of papad and it bubbles and rises to the top immediately, your oil is hot enough. Carefully lower the papad into the oil to start frying. Use a spatula to push it down into the oil and turn it a couple of times.
- Step 7: Remove the pappada vada from the oil when it has browned and become crispy. Each papada vada should take 45 to 60 seconds but use your eyes. Be sure not to burn them.
- Step 8: Serve the pappada vada with your favourite chutneys. Keralan chutneys are of course best and most authentic.
What goes well with pappada vada?
Pappada vada is delicious as a snack on its own but alos goes well with the following:
- Hot chai, coffee or cold lager: I like mine with lager but for that true Keralan tea shop experience, you might like to try them with hot chai.
- Green coconut chutney or onion-tomato chutney
- Ginger or garlic chutney
- As a crunchy side with rice and sambar!
Variations
- Extra spicy: Try adding more chilli powder and/or chilli flakes for a bit more kick.
- Curry leaves: If you have them, try chopping up about 15 curry leaves and adding them to the batter. Delicious!
- Ginger or garlic: Finely chopped garlic and ginger are both very nice added to the batter.
Equipment
You won’t need anything fancy to make pappada vada at home, but here’s a quick checklist:
Mixing bowls – one for making the batter.
Tongs – for dipping and frying the papads safely.
Slotted spoon – to remove the fried papads from oil.
Deep frying pan or kadai – use a wide pan to accommodate the size of the papads.
Cooling rack or kitchen paper – for draining excess oil.
Storage
Short-term storage:
- Pappada Vada stays crisp for up to 2–3 hours at room temperature. Store them uncovered to prevent sogginess.
Long-term storage:
- If you want to make them ahead, let them cool completely and store in an airtight container lined with paper towel. They’ll stay crisp for up to 2 days, but texture may decline slightly over time.
Reheating:
Avoid microwaving—they’ll go soft and lose their crunch.
Re-crisp in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 3–5 minutes, or briefly in an air fryer.
Top Tip
Don’t oversoak – Dip the papad quickly and fry immediately to keep it crisp and light.
FAQ
You can mix your spices and sesame seeds together. If you blend the batter too early, it could thicken and be difficult to use. Adding a drop of water will fix this but it's such and easy job you might like to just blend the batter right before using.
You can easily thicken the batter so that it adheres to the papads by whisking in rice flour one tablespoon at a time until it reaches that creamy consistency.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dips to serve with poppada vada:
Pappada Vada
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Basmati rice, rinsed and soaked in water for five hours
- Water for blending
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon chilli powder
- 1 generous tablespoon black sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp dried chilli flakes (optional)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- More water if needed, should be batter consistency like double cream
- 20 papads
- Oil for deep frying
Instructions
- Place the soaked rice in a food processor and add just enough water to blend into a thick batter. Whisk in the rest of the ingredients. The batter should be thick enough to adhere to the papads when dipped into it. If it is too thick to easily dip, add a drop more water.
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan or wok until hot enough to deep fry. If you drop a piece of papad into the oil and it sizzles and floats to the top immediately, the oil is ready.
- Dip the first papad into the batter ensuring that it is very well coated and gently place it into the oil. Fry for about 40 seconds until the batter coating turns light brown. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a wire rack over a tray. Allow the excess oil to drip into the pan while you finish cooking the remaining papads.
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