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Pav bhaji

AI-drafted · awaiting admin review

A buttery mash of vegetables cooked with pav bhaji masala on a hot griddle, served with toasted buttered pav.

Region: Mumbai, MaharashtraOccasion: Street food; evening mealTime: 45 minServes: 4Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 3 potatoes, boiled
  • 1 cup cauliflower florets, boiled
  • ½ cup green peas, boiled
  • 1 capsicum, finely chopped
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 3 tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 2½ tbsp pav bhaji masala
  • 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
  • 4 tbsp butter, plus more for the pav
  • Salt to taste
  • 8 pav
  • Chopped onion, coriander and lemon to serve

Method

  1. Melt 2 tbsp butter in a wide pan. Fry one onion and the ginger-garlic paste until soft.
  2. Add the capsicum and tomatoes and cook until mushy.
  3. Add chilli powder and pav bhaji masala and stir for a minute.
  4. Add the boiled vegetables and mash everything well with a masher, adding water to get a thick, smooth bhaji. Simmer 10 minutes and finish with the rest of the butter.
  5. Slit the pav and toast on a griddle with butter and a pinch of masala.
  6. Serve the bhaji topped with butter, raw onion and coriander, with lemon and the hot pav.

History

Pav bhaji is said to have begun in Mumbai as a quick, late-night meal for textile mill workers, cooked on large iron griddles.

Significance

Juhu and Chowpatty beach stalls made pav bhaji famous, and it is now eaten across India.