Tuesday 13 October 2009

Paav-Bhaji….Mumbai Street Food | पाव भाजी | Step Wise |

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Hi!
There are certain dishes in your kitchen which you think you make it the best and you have gained an expertise in that. One of such dishes from my kitchen which I believe I make really good and I like it the way I make it, have been praised by friends and relatives is surely the Pav-Bhaji. It is one preparation for which I can claim that you make it in my way and you will get accolades for it. I might sound that I am boasting about it, but trust me friends I am just sharing the truth and I am sharing with you my secret recipe which has absolutely no secret ingredients in it.Open-mouthedIt is just the right quantity of ingredients and the right texture which yields the perfect taste to the bhaji. Those who are already an expert in making this dish will agree to me. For people who have never attempted this please feel free to try it in my way.


 What is Pav- Bhaji ?
Pav Bhaji is the king of Mumbai street food. This is one dish that feeds millions of people around India on a daily basis. This melt-in-your-mouth Indian delicacy is a staple snack of the people of Mumbai and the city serves some of the finest pav bhaji.
It is very easy to make and a lifesaver for busy mothers and housewives keen to rustle up a quick and delicious meal for the family. Whenever I think of Pav Bhaji I remember Amar Juice Centre in Juhu Galli of Mumbai, where we used to go past 10’o clock  in the night and hog on this amazing street food.
 Nutritive Value
If made in low quantities of butter this is a very nutritive dish as it has lots of vegetables providing you the vitamins, minerals and fibre. It is also a rich source of carbohydrates as it has potatoes in it.
It can be a high calorie dish when made in good quantity of butter, can be fattening for grown ups but good for growing children.
Origin of Pav Bhaji
The Wiki says, the origin of this dish is traced to the heyday of the textile mills in Mumbai. The mill workers used to have 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 physical labor after lunch. A vendor created this dish using items or parts of other dishes available on the menu. Roti or rice was replaced with pav and the curries that usually go with Indian bread or rice were amalgamated into just one spicy concoction-the 'bhaji'. Initially, it remained the food of the mill-workers. With time the dish found its way into restaurants and spread over Central Mumbai and other parts of the city via the Udipi restaurants. Such is popularity of this dish, that it is common to find it on the menu of most Indian restaurants serving fast food in Asia (especially Singapore, Hong Kong), America, UK (London), Switzerland and elsewhere.

Ingredients
5-6  medium size, boiled and peeled Potatoes grated
2 onions chopped finely
3 –4 large garlic pods crushed
10-12 French beans chopped finely
4 –5 Tomatoes minced coarsely
1 small cauliflower grated
1/2 cup peas crushed
3 capsicum finely chopped
3 tbsp pav bhaji masala (I use Baadshah brand and recommend it too)
salt to taste
4 –5 tbsp butter
3-4 tsp oil
for Garnish-
Butter
a capsicum finely chopped
finely chopped onion
lemon wedges
chopped cilantro

Method for Bhaji

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Heat oil and saute the onions and then add the garlic and cook till the raw smell disappears.

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Add in the tomatoes and mix properly.

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Steam cook the cauliflower, peas and beans along with the potatoes in a pressure cooker. After cooling crush them with hand and mix in the Bhaji. Also add the finely chopped capsicum.

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Add in the grated boiled potatoes.

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Add the pav bhaji masala and mix in thoroughly. Add some water to bring it to a sauce like consistency.
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Mash the Bhaji  so that all ingredients get blended in each other.

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Add in the Butter and bring the bhaaji to a boil.

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For serving the Pav-Bhaji
Take a plate put some Bhaaji in it , put butter according to your taste and capacity. Put some chopped onion, cilantro, capsicum and squeeze in some lime juice.
Cut the pav into halves and smear butter on them and then toast them on a tava till lightly brown on either side, serve them with bhaaji.

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Tip-
In an authentic Pav-Bhaji, 100gms of butter is used to make one serving plate. It does tastes heavenly but is loaded with Calories. One is free to add and check out.
Variations-
Jain Pav Bhaaji – make without the onion and garlic
Cheese Pav Bhaji- Grated cheese added to the original Bhaji.
Paneer Pav Bhaji- Grated cottage cheese added to the Bhaji, which I did later.
This can bring a good change to the regular meals so I am sending this to WYF : Light Meal  hosted by EC at Simple Indian Food
and to
 Kids DelightKids Delight1

hosted by Srivalli, as all kids love this dish, especially if a dollop of butter is added to it.
If You Enjoyed This Post Please Take 5 Seconds To Share It.

40 comments:

Shanthi Krishnakumar said...

Lovely mouthwatering recipe

Preeti Kashyap said...

yummmy!!!!!!.. i love this dish!

chakhlere said...

Woww!! Pav bhaji is my favorite. You bhaji has got perfect color. I am drooling here.

chef and her kitchen said...

Thats a nice info abt origin of PB...looks delectable dear...

Sailaja Damodaran said...

yummy,nice event recipe

Nandinis food said...

Pav Bhaji is the famous snack in my family! It looks awesome and I feel like grabbing some from the screen!

ST said...

My favorite one...Looks scrumptious...Started carving for it now...

Ushnish Ghosh said...

Dear pari
This is, as usual, another master piece from you, the intro, the photos etc .I shall try the cheese version. I believe no one should compromise on that 100gm butter per helping.
Regards and Happy Deepavali

Ushnish

Tina said...

Nice post...

Palidor said...

I've never heard of this dish, but I can see why it would be so delicious!

ann low said...

WOW! What a great blend of flavours~~looks yummy.

Sushma Mallya said...

Lovely pic pari,love ur effort of uploading the pic of each and every step u make...Nice way to explain ....looks mouthwatering...

prasu said...

lovely pics dear..pavbhaji is looking delicious.

Nithya said...

Wow.. any day, any time, how many ever times in a day, I can enjoy this the same way. :) Luv pav bhaji :)

Avisha said...

that looks yummy!!

Namitha said...

One of my fav dishes...grt pics too..

Unknown said...

love pav bhaji..very tempting..nicely presented...Wish i could have it rite now.

Unknown said...

Lovely step by step instructions, my all time fav pav bhaji. Would love to have right away.

Katy ~ said...

Oh, my! This does look so intriguing and tempting. Would surely love to sample this and enjoy. Wish we lived closer together so I could learn with you.

Home Cooked Oriya Food said...

wow - so mouth watering...
can u pass me a plate too ?

Sanghi said...

Am Drooling over them now..!

Rohini said...

Wow.. Mouth-watering!! I love Pav Bhaji and can have it anytime.. Yours look so authentic.. I am gonna try it soon!!
Just a quick question: Is there anything I can substitute instead of Pav bhaji masala?

Pari Vasisht said...

Hi all! Thanks for your sweet comments.
@ Rohini, Dear you can add garam masala to the bhaji, but the authentic taste comes from the pav bhaji masala only. The recipe of the masala should be available on the net, else you can buy it from any Indian/Asian store. Hope this helps you. I have found one link check it out
http://www.grouprecipes.com/9948/pav-bhaji-masala.html

Priya Suresh said...

Am ready to finish this dish, such a droolworthy and my all time favourite dish...makes me hungry Pari..

Kanchan said...

Even I think I make the best pav bhaji :D
Yours look Perrfect as usual :)

Pari Vasisht said...

Hi Kanchan, good to hear that you also like your pav-bhaji.I must visit you surely to taste yours and you are invited to taste mine.

My Little Space said...

I would love this to go with my chappati or roti canai or naan! Really nice blended and I can imagine the flavour out of it...truely aromatic.

Malar said...

pav bhaji is super..

Recipeswap said...

ohhhhhh thats some yummy looking pav bhaji.

Anonymous said...

who wud say a no to this street chaat? btw, u got nice nails.

Padma said...

Looks mouthwatering Pari.... both my sons love this dish ... was nice to read the origin of the dish :)

Sum Raj said...

oh my god...its too tempting...

Saritha said...

Pari delicious,my mouth is watering.

Nice info about pav bajji thanx for sharing :)

lubnakarim06 said...

My all time favourite street food...looks spicy and yummy.....never tried using cauliflower and french beans...will try adding them next time...that's an awesome info on pav bhaji...

Jaishree Iyer said...

Its too tempting Pari.. Wishing u Happy Diwali!

Dhanya Ganesh said...

Looks yum. One of my fav.:).

Shri said...

Oh my!It looks absolutely mouth watering, Pari..Happy Diwali to you!

EC said...

Love Pav bhaji and Vada pav..Thanks for the entry

RV @ Food for 7 Stages said...

It reminds me of the pav-bhaji i had it in mumbai.. lovely entry.. you are making me miss India now.. :-(

best hotel management colleges in Kolkata said...

This looks quite fabulous! And with all those flavours, I can imagine it would be beautifully fragrant and tasty too :)

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