PAV BHAJI

MUMBAI, THE CITY THAT NEVER SLEEPS,
WHERE YOU WILL FIND EVERYTHING IN HEAPS..the energy, enthusiasm, life, good food and also..people..lol!!

Food is the soul of the colorful culture of amchi Mumbai. Its food palette is one of the most diverse and unique ones you will ever come across. From the sweet & savory to the bold and spicy, you will find all the flavors in there & nothing sums it up better, than Mumbai's street food.

Vada pav, Chaat, Pav bhaji, to name a few, are Mumbai's darling fast foods.
Not only are they extremely delicious but also surprisingly easy on the pocket.

We will be looking at recipes of many street foods in the coming blog posts. In this segment we are making Pav Bhaji!!

Pav bhaji is one of the healthier meals (of course only if pools of butter enough to swim in are avoided), which is also prepared in almost every Indian household.
It is a concoction of myriad vegetables and spices. The spice mix called the 'pav bhaji masala' is easily available at any indian store.

So let's get started with the recipe-

Prep. Time- 10 minutes
Cook Time- 35-40 minutes
Serves- 4-6 people




All you need is-

• Onions- 2
• Potatoes- 2-3
• Tomatoes- 3-4
• Cauliflower- 1 cup
• Capsicum- 1 
• Peas- 1/2 cup
• Ginger-Garlic Paste- 2 tablespoons
• Red Chili powder- 1 tablespoon
• Pav Bhaji masala- 1-2 tablespoons or as directed on the packet.
• Green chillies- (optional)- 2
• Oil- 2 tablespoons.
• Butter-1 stick or 4-5 tablespoons
• Salt to taste
• Coriander and chopped onion for garnish
• Lime wedges
• Pav (Dinner Rolls)- as required

This is how we do it-

1. Boil the potatoes and peas separately. Peal off the skin of the potatoes and mash them. Mash the peas and keep them aside.
2. Chop all the remaining veggies finely.
3. In a pan, heat oil and add the chopped green chillies. Add the onions and sauté till they turn translucent.
4. Add ginger garlic paste to the pan and red chili powder and continue mixing.
5. Add tomatoes and cook them till they turn soft.
6. Add the chopped capsicum & cauliflower and mix the bhaji thoroughly. Sauté till the veggies become tender.
7. Mix in the mashed peas and potatoes and add the pav bhaji masala. Add salt to taste.
8. Add hot water as required, to make a gravy-like mixture. The consistency should be almost like that of porridge.
9. Cook for 15-20 minutes more or till all the vegetables have cooked.
10. Mash the bhaji using a spoon or a masher, till all the vegetables blend well into a homogenous mixture.
11. Add in a dollop of butter and garnish with a dash of lemon juice and handful of chopped coriander leaves.
12. For the pav, heat a pan and add the remaining butter little at a time. Slit the pav in the middle but don't cut it in half.It should look kinda like pac-man. Toast the pac-man  pav on butter till golden brown.
13. Serve the bhaji with pav and chopped onions and enjoy!

The types and quantities of the vegetables can be adjusted according to your liking and taste. For instance, you can even add cabbage, carrots etc. to the bhaji and it will still taste great.

Hope you try the recipe and enjoy it.
Happy Cooking!