Pav Bhaji- A highly popular street food of Mumbai, that comes with pav (a soft bun) and bhaji (a curry that is prepared with mashed vegetables and spices in a tomato gravy), is eaten by many people as a favorite savory dish. Though it is popular as street food or chaat, it isn’t as unhealthy as one might presume it to be. It’s super rich in nutrients as a lot of vegetables go into the bhaji. Of course, it’s slightly high in calories if you are having it in the authentic way which is utterly butterly delicious, but you can reduce the amount of butter you use if you are very particular about the calorie intake. I don’t count the calories while enjoying this particular dish as every bite is worth it. If you are visiting Mumbai, you can’t miss the Pav bhaji and Vada pav at the Juhu beach. Last year when we were in Mumbai, we visited a place called Sardar pav bhaji that is located in Tardeo near Mumbai central that is famous for pav bhaji. I must admit, it was the best pav bhaji I ever ate in my life. So if you ever happen to visit Mumbai, do check out this place to enjoy the unique flavors of the beautiful, buttery, in short- authentic street food.
There are many variations in Pav bhaji; there’s cheese pav bhaji, paneer pav bhaji, mushroom pav bhaji, kolhapuri pav bhaji etc., but I am going to share the recipe of ‘cheese pav bhaji’ that I prepared last week. The bhaji (curry) is also improvised by people through the addition of select vegetables. But the most important part of this dish; its main taste, lies in the quality of the bun and the spices that go into the making of the bhaji. I always prefer to use freshly bought buns that are soft (later crispy when cooked) to eat with my bhaji.
Recipe:
Wash and cut vegetables of your choice. I used potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, peas and capsicum for my bhaji. I normally don’t prefer to use food colors in my recipes so I just added 1/2 of a beet to add natural color to my curry. If you don’t like the taste of beet, however, you can remove them once they are cooked. Put all the chopped vegetables (except capsicum) in a pressure cooker and add enough water for the vegetables to cook. Add a pinch of turmeric and salt to taste. Set the flame on medium heat and let it cook up to 2-3 whistles. Drain the water and keep it aside. Mash the cooked vegetables with the help of a masher.
Wash and cut the tomatoes into large pieces. Blend them into a purée along with a few cloves of garlic and a small piece of ginger. You can use ginger garlic paste as well. Some people chop tomatoes finely, and then cook. But I prefer to use them in the form of a tomato purée, and so I blend it.
Heat oil/ butter in a pan. I used just butter for this recipe as, personally, I think it gives a much creamier and better taste to the bhaji. When the butter melts, add the tomato purée. Let it cook for a few minutes till the rawness of the tomatoes is all cooked out, and then add the spices. I added red chili powder and pav bhaji masala powder and salt to my curry. If you don’t have pav bhaji masala at home, just add the garam masala powder and amchur (dry mango powder) and your bhaji would still taste delicious. I just added a little salt as I already added salt to my vegetables while they were cooking. Add finely chopped capsicum and cook for a few more minutes.
When the oil starts oozing out, add the mashed vegetables along with the vegetable stock. Mix it well and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes till the spices have blended in well with the bhaji. Add in more stock or water if needed. Check the salt and spices and adjust as per requirement. Once the bhaji starts thickening, turn the heat off. Garnish with some chopped cilantro and squeeze some lime juice over the top. The nutritious and mouth-watering bhaji is ready!
Heat some butter on a non stick pan or tawa over low heat and lightly toast the split buns. Serve it with the bhaji that is garnished with chopped onions and a piece of butter on top.
This is the traditional way of eating pav bhaji. But I wanted to try it with a twist of cheese and bake it in the oven.
So, I placed the halved buns in a casserole, topped with bhaji and grated mozzarella cheese and covered it with the other halves of the buns. I garnished it with some cilantro and cheese and put it in the oven for 10 minutes to bake. And your warm, scrumptious, cheesy, spicy and flavorful stuffed pavs/buns are a twist on the classic pav bhaji. While my elder one liked to have it the traditional way, the rest of the family enjoyed this new oven baked Cheese Pav Bhaji. 😀
