Raw Banana Vada (Vazakkai Vadas)

Raw Banana is called Vazakkai in Tamil and this recipe is an old and almost forgotten one which used to be made in the beautiful city of Ootacamund or Ooty.An octogenarian who ran a small tea and snack stall gave me this information while I was sipping a hot cup of the most delicious tasting Orange Pekoe variety freshly sourced from the lush tea gardens.She told me that as Bananas did not grow in the cold climate,they were sourced from the city of Coimbatore – the nearest Tamil Nadu Banana growing region as early as 1950s – 70s.They were carefully preserved – the ripe ones in jaggery syrup and the raw ones were boiled,mashed and refrigerated.They were made into these great tasting Vadas and were relished by everyone including movie stars who occasionally came to shoot for their movies. I fell in love with this Vada at the first bite – It was piping hot from the fry pan,crispy on the outside and soft and flavourful with a whole burst of flavours in the mouth.I asked her for the recipe and told her about my blog for which she readily agreed to share the recipe.This Vada is so easy and delicious.There they serve it with Coconut and Tomato Chutneys.I served it with Ketchup – delicious!