Pav Bhaji
Indian street food at its finest, an explosion of taste
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Ingredients
For 5 servings:
- 2 large potatoes 385 grams, boiled
- 1/2 head of a small cauliflower 215 grams, boiled
- 1/2 of a large green pepper 135 grams, boiled
- 1/2 cup frozen green peas boiled
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons butter unsalted, divided
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 medium red onion 230 grams, finely chopped
- 2 inch ginger 24 grams, finely chopped
- 7 cloves garlic 20 grams, finely chopped
- 2 green chilies finely chopped, adjust to taste
- 3 large tomatoes 425 grams, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup tomato puree store bought
- 1.25 teaspoon salt divided
- 1.25 cups water divided
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon pav bhaji masala or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste
- 2 teaspoons kasuri methi also known as dried fenugreek leaves
- 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- juice of 1 large lemon
Instructions
- Boil the veggies first and keep them ready. I used my pressure cooker to boil them until they were soft and tender.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in a large pot on medium heat. Once the butter melts and oil is hot, add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle.
- Add the chopped onions and mix.
- Cook the onions for around 4 minutes until golden brown in color.
- Add the finely chopped ginger, garlic and green chili. Cook the ginger-garlic-green chili for 1 minute.
- Add chopped tomatoes and mix well. Let the tomatoes cook for 2 minutes.
- Add store bought tomato puree, 1/4 cup water and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover the pan and let the tomato cook for 6 minutes until softened and completely cooked.
- Add the pav bhaji masala, red chili powder and remaining 1 teaspoon of salt. You may also add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar here (optional).
- Mix well and then add in 2 teaspoons of kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves).
- Stir in the boiled veggies and mix. Using a potato masher, mash the veggies until they are completely mixed with the masala.
- Add the remaining 3/4 - 1 cup water and mix. I used an immersion blender to blend the veggies to a paste like consistency at this point but this is optional. You may keep them as such.
- Cover the pot and set heat to low. Let the bhaji simmer on low heat for 15 minutes.
- Open the pot and add in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.
- Add a generous amount of chopped cilantro.
- Then add in juice of 1 large lemon. Let the bhaji simmer for 2 more minutes and then remove pan from heat.