Pav Bhaji is an awesome fast food or street food loved by one and all. It is spicy mixed vegetables cooked in tomato gravy normally eaten with pav or soft bread roll (bun). You can use any veggies for this dish. However, carrots, potatoes, cauliflower, peas, and green bell peppers are usually the most popular ones used!
Why you'll love Pav Bhaji?
- The combination of the delicious vegetable dip with mashed potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, peas, and unique spices with the bread is exceptional.
- You get a lot of vegetables into your diet with this meal, loved by kids and elders alike.
- Adding chopped onions and coriander leaves with a hint of lemon takes this dish to another level.
- Great for parties and potlucks. Make the vegetable dip or sauce ahead of time. Just toast the pav or buns with butter just before having it.
How to make Pav Bhaji?
The special pav bhaji masala gives a unique taste to this dish. I usually buy it from the Indian grocery store. The veggies are all pressure-cooked and mashed and then added to fried onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers along with the spices to form a gravy-like consistency. If you wish you can also add a little authentic garam masala at the end I usually use the store-bought pav or bun which is shallow fried with butter. The recipe details are below.
Useful Tips to make the perfect Bhaji
- Use a little grated beets when you cook the veggies to get a deep brown color. I did not have beets, so I haven't used them. You can try using it to get a nice color.
- Although any vegetables can be used in this dish, it is better to use veggies like potatoes, carrots, and cauliflower for the authentic taste.
- Use butter when sauteeing the vegetables and plenty of chopped coriander leaves.
- Add a slice of bread torn into bits to the gravy for better consistency and taste.
- Toast the pav or buns with butter on a pan.
- Mash the potatoes and veggies with a potato masher very finely, the finer the better.
What kind of Pav goes well with Pav Bhaji?
- Homemade pav or bread is the best that goes with this dish.
- You can also use Hawaiian savory rolls or hamburger buns.
- Pav is also available in Indian grocery stores.
Pav Bhaji
Ingredients
- 3 potatoes boiled and mashed
- 1 lemon
- 3 green chilies
- 2 carrots
- ½ cup green peas
- 1 bell pepper chopped
- 1 onion diced
- 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
- 1 cup cauliflower optional
- 4 tsp Pav Bhaji masala
- 1 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 bunch coriander leaves chopped
- ¼ tsp garam masala
- 3 tomatoes medium sized, preferable to cook in hot water and de-skin if possible for great taste
Instructions
- Chop bell pepper(capsicum), onion, and tomatoes (use cooked and peeled)
- Pressure cook all the other veggies like potatoes, carrots, cauliflower etc
- Once cooked mash it into a smooth paste
- In a pan heat oil or butter, splutter cumin seeds
- Add diced onions, green chilies, bell peppers and sautée well
- Add ginger-garlic paste and sautée again
- Add tomatoes and keep cooking till the oil leaves the sides of the pan
- Add in all the spice powders - turmeric, chilly powder, pav bhaji masala, and salt
- Add the mashed veggies
- Add garam masala in the end
- Add water to get a consistency that is gravy-like so you can scoop it using the bread
- Squeeze lemon juice into the dish
- Garnish with chopped coriander, onions, and butter
- Scoop some bhaji(gravy) with a piece of pav(bun) and Enjoy!
Nutrition
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This recipe is so flavorful! Took very little time to make and my family really enjoyed it. Excited to make it again!
This made a tasty lunch!!! So flavorful!
This worked exactly as written, thanks!
It looks like that, you know where I can buy it in Mexico
Looks yummy!
Thank you so much!
Looks delicious!
Looking very delicious...awesome recipe !!
Thank you Anshu!
Hmmmm yummy. My tongue is drooling
Thank you Deepa!
Delicious....Pav Bhaji reminds me of home!
Aww, how nice ..Thank you Pia ! perfect for a Friday night at home 🙂
Can have this every day! Looking yummy!
Isn't it , totally agree can have it anytime! I could only get a pic using my phone this time 🙂 Thanks Mallika!
If the food is this good, then it doesn't matter if it's camera or the phone that's capturing it. Now I am craving it! 😉
yes so true, hope you get to make it soon too!
Yummy! It is my favorite, thanks for sharing!!
Thanks Megala ! its a favorite at my home too 🙂