Misal Pav

From the first time that Ma converted a sabji that we had for lunch into a quick-fix, healthy and delicious evening snack, I was hooked onto misal pav. A very Maharastrian dish that can easily convert itself into a full meal and is quite popular as an evening snack and street food.



Sprouts are low on calories and high on proteins and vitamins. Usually misal is made with sprouted matki / moth beans or dried peas and potatoes. We didn't use the potatoes this time, but if you like, you can add cooked potatoes along with the sprouts.
Ma used Malvani masala that is known for it fiery taste and so the the curd / yoghurt helped bring the spice down a few notches. The misal is topped with some chivda, chopped onions, coriander leaves and lemon to get a crunchy tangy taste. You can make it more gravy if you like to dip the pav in it and slurp along.

My other favourite is left over choley topped over bread and a sprinkle of sev over it. Simply Yum.
What are your favourite combination with leftover sabjis ?

Misal Pav

What you need -

2 cloves
1 piece cinnamon
1 bay leaf
1 spoon coriander seeds
4 red chillies
1.5 cups cooked sprouts (moth beans / dried peas / mixed sprouts)
3 medium sized onions chopped into small pieces
2 tbsp grated dry coconut / kopra
1 tsp tamarind paste / pulp
1/2 tsp kolhapuri / malvani / garam masala
1 tbsp oil
salt to taste

Garnishing
1 onion finely chopped
3-4 tbsp coriander leaves finely chopped
1/2 lemon

Add ons
Curd
Chivda / Mixture / Sev
Pav

What you do with it -

In a pan, heat a tbsp of oil and add cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf, coriander seeds and red chillies
Add 2 chopped onions and fry for 3-4 mins
Add grated dry coconut and fry for a few mins
Allow it to cool and grind along with the tamarind paste / pulp
Fry the remaining chopped onion and add the masala
Fry until you see oil leaving the sides of the pan
Add turmeric powder, salt and the cooked matki
Add half cup water and allow it to cook up a bit
If you like it a little spicy, sprinkle 1/2 tsp garam masala / kolhapuri masala / malvani masala and stir well
Take it off the heat
Garnish with chopped onions and coriander leaves
Squeeze a lemon over it and serve with pav / bread, chivda / mixture and curd

Tava Pulao

I have grown up eating freshly cooked food for every meal. Leftovers were really not preferred and I guess after once you get the estimate of cooking for the number of people right, you land up with less left-overs. The freezer to microwave concept never existed at home and I am not too fond of it myself. But wasting food has always been discouraged, so if there are left-overs, then its creatively modified or had as is, but it cannot go waste.

On a regular day, I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, specially in the mornings starting at 5.30am. First breakfast for my son, then his lunch to be packed. Their school is very particular and only home cooked food is allowed, no packeted food, and they prefer rotis and a sabji with some fruits. Then it breakfast for TH and me, we are not big on cereals and oats, so its usually a typical Indian breakfast with poha, upma, dosa, idli, parathas.
Lunch, evening snack for my son and dinner for all of us. So that makes it about 6 times in a day.



I hadn't heard of this tava pulao till TH had it from one of the street food stalls in Bombay / Mumbai many years back. The thelas or food stalls that usually make pav bhaji in the evenings, dish up this tava pulao for lunch near the crowded office areas of the Fort area in Bombay. The vegetables and the masala used in Pav bhaji are cooked on the tava and then the cooked rice is added to it. Lots of butter and some clang-clanging of mixing the rice with the masala are you are handed over this plate of hot delicious rice.

We are typically rice-eaters and I am consciously trying to cut down our rice intake at nights. I had some left over rice from lunch, a few veggies stocked up and some pav bhaji masala that has been languishing in the pantry, waiting to be used.
I do make pav bhaji but it isn't that often and I prefer to use up these masalas soon enough, definitely before its expiry date.
I remembered TH's description of that tava pulao and decided to convert this left-over rice



Its really tasty because of the pav bhaji masala. A squeeze of lemon juice and a little butter add a lot to this dish. Served with some raita and you have a complete meal in about 10 mins.

Tava Pulao

What you need -

2 cups cooked rice
1 onion
2 tomatoes
1 capsicum
(Add more vegetables if you like)
1/2 cup shelled peas
1-2 tsp pav bhaji masala
1/2 a lemon
coriander leaves to garnish
1 tbsp butter

What you do with it -

Chop the capsicum, onions and tomatoes
Boil the peas with a little salt for 5 mins
Heat a little oil in a kadhai/wok or a deep tava/pan
Add the onions and fry for 2-3 mins on a high flame
Add the tomatoes, capsicum and peas
Add the pav bhaji masala and salt and 2-3 tbsp water
Once the vegetables are almost cooked, add the rice
Stir well ad then add the butter
Fry for 2-3 mins
Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over it and garnish with coriander leaves
Serve hot with raita / curds

Street Food - Pav Bhaji with Masala Pav

We were out shopping, on one of our visits to Bombay. Had a look at the new malls, walked near Haji Ali and shopped till we almost dropped out of exhaustion and hunger..
We had heard of this place called Sardar Pav Bhaji which was around the same area, so went straight there. The pav bhaji was really nice, but i must have added on a zillion calories with the butter they add - they have this little refrigerator which is full of 500gm packets of amul butter, and they are very very generous with the butter, which I think we could have easily done without.
The bhaji was mashed really well and had been on the tava, getting cooked and recooked with a whole lot of butter (again), so you get this really nice flavour..
If you can afford to forget about the calories, this is a great place to go to..

I had never really made pav bhaji at home - its easily available here and I always thought it would involve too much effort.
Had a little of all these veggies at home, so finally made it and it was a nice spicy meal

This recipe is adapted from Tarla Dalal's website and has a few different ingredients from thre regular recipes i have seen - gives it a nice spicy, tangy taste.



What you need -

1/2 cup peas
2 carrots
1 cup cauliflower florets
2 onions chopped
1/2 cup capsicum
2 tomatoes
2 potatoes
1 inch piece ginger
1 green chilli
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp salt
1/4 turmeric powder
1/2 tsp black salt
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
2 tsp pav bhaji masala
2 tbsp butter
2 red chillies (Kashmiri ones if you have them)
2-3 garlic pods
1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves

Masala Pavs -

8 Pavs / Buns
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp pav bhaji masala
pinch of salt

What you do with it -

Steam all the vegetables. I put it in the microwave with half a cup of water and cooked for 7 mins
Make a paste of red chilly and garlic
Heat butter in a large pan
Add onions and capsicums, green chilli and ginger to the same pan and cook for 1 min
Add the chilly garlic paste & cook till onions turn golden brown
Add the tomatoes & cook till oil separates
Add the pav bhaji masala, salt, black salt, chilli powder & turmeric powder
Cook for 1-2 mins
Add cauliflower, carrots, peas and potatoes
Mash using a potato masher or a large ladle
Stir and mash adding little water (as needed) and cook till done
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice

For the pavs -

Cut the pav in half horizontally
Heat the butter and add the salt and pav bhaji masala
Spread it over the inside of the pavs
Roast the pavs on the tava till it turns a bit brown

Serve pav bhaji with chopped or sliced onions and wedges of lime and a dollop of butter

Street Food - Dabeli

Whenever I visited Mumbai, my trip was never complete without eating the awesome vada pav. On one visit, I tasted a distant cousin of the vada pav - DABELI !!
Crunchy with peanuts and pomegranate seeds, spicy and sweet, all in one bite.

We've moved to Ahmedabad and man, this is truly a street-food paradise - Dhokla, faafda, mathia, khicchu, dabeli, ghantia, chaat, sandwich dhokla...the list goes on, but I havent still learnt the names or tried the others as yet...
Dabeli is supposed to have originated in Kutch, and called Kachchi dabeli - I am still not sure whether it is kachchi (raw) beacuse it isnt fried, or because it come from Kutch, but it definately has a Gujarat connection.

Made this last night for dinner, doesnt leave you with a stuffed feeling, and the crunch of the pomegranate and peanuts leaves a real nice taste in your mouth
I tend to go real easy on butter and oil, so have used it very minimally here






What you need -
(this is for 5 dabelis)

3-4 potatoes
seeds of one small pomegranate
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1/2 cup coriander leaves
1/2 cup tomato ketchup
2 tbsp garlic chutney (optional)
1/2 cup date-tamarind chuntney
5 burger buns / pavs

For the Masala -

2 cloves
1 inch piece cinnamon
2 tsp sugar
salt
a pinch of asafoetida
1 tsp chilli powder

What you do with it -

Boil potatoes, peel and mash
For the masala, powder the cinnamon and cloves and mix all the other ingredients
Add the masala, pomegranate seeds, coriander leaves to the mashed potatoes
Adjust salt and chilli powder
Slit the buns in half, add a bit of butter on both sides(inside) and fry on a tawa / pan
Apply some tomatoe ketchup, garlic chutney and tamarind chutney on the base of the bun
Top with the mashed mixture garnish with more pomegranate and coriander if you like
Press the mixture inside the bun and fry on the tawa for 2 mins
Serve with chopped onions / sev