Pav Bhaji

 

Pav bhaji is a fast food dish from India. It consists of a thick vegetable curry, with a soft bread roll, which may be toasted, and served with butter, cut onion and lemon. The origin of this dish traces back to textile mill workers in Mumbai in the 1850s. They had lunch breaks too short for a full meal, and a light lunch was preferred to a heavy one, as the employees had to return to strenuous physical labour after lunch.

My children love this dish and I used to make for dinner quite frequently. They would insist on preparing extra, for taking to school lunch the next day.

Ingredients

100 gms French beans

100 gm potatoes

100 gm green peas

¾ cup cauli flower pieces

1 small carrot

Salt to taste

2 tbsps oil

3 big tomatoes cut fine

3 onions cut fine

1 green chilli slit

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

½ tsp red chilli powder

½ garam masala powder OR pav bhaji masala powder

2 tbsps cut coriander leaves

1 lemon

Instruction

-          Wash, clean, peel and cut all vegetables into small pieces. Pressure cook all vegetables except onion and tomatoes, with 1 ½  cups water for one whistle. Let it cool and then open.

-          While the vegetable is cooking, heat a thick bottomed pan, pour the oil, add cut onion (keep aside some for garnishing later), reduce the flame and stir in between.

-          When the onion is transparent, add the ginger garlic paste and slit green chilli. 

When nice aroma comes, add the cut tomatoes and keep stirring in between till the tomatoes become mushy.

-          Now add the cooked vegetables, red chilli powder, garam masala powder and salt. Keep mashing the vegetables on low fire. If needed add some more water. After about ten minutes, remove from fire.

-          Serve with cut lemon, and garnish with cut onion and coriander leaves, along with toasted pav (soft buns) and butter.