Friday, February 05, 2010

Pav Bhaji

Here is an old post with Pav Bhaji love.

Utterly Butterly Delicious Pao Bhaji

Pao Bhajis and "Indian Pizzas" in Mumbai. These Indian 'za's and subs are way tastier than these and these. Probably because this cook grills his tomatoes for a long time before adding the rest of the ingredients, then tops off his Bombay hoaggies and pies with more chopped tomatoes, this time uncooked. Not to mention the fresh bread that is delivered to his stall every morning by the bicycle pao wala. He also said he uses a good pav bhaji masala he gets from his brother. Also, he grills the bread w/ Amul butter. Here is a recipe for from a great little cookbook I picked up in Bombay called "Street Foods of India" It's a summertime recipe actually because of all the tomatoes involved, but in India there are always tomatoes.
Pao Bhaji

1 KG Potatoes, peeled, diced, boiled w/ tumeric and salt
1 C Ghee
2 cups Tomatoes, diced
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
6 Green chiles, chopped fine
1 1/2 T Ginger, minced
1 1/2 t Tumeric powder
1 t Red chile powder
2t Garlic paste 2t Ginger paste
1 C Water
3/4 C Amul butter (or annato butter)

3t Pao Bhaji Masala (recipe below)
1 C Cilantro, chopped
3 T Lemon Juice
12 Bread Rolls (Pao), cut horizontally

-Heat ghee in a tawa or heavy bottomed frying pan. Fry tomatoes for 3-4 minutes over med heat until the juices reduce and flavors concentrate. Add onions, green chiles, minced ginger and tumeric powder. Stir fry for 4-5 minutes over medium heat. -Add Potatoes, red chile powder and plenty of salt. Continue to cook over low heat mashing and stirring for 6-7 minutes. -Add the garlic and ginger pastes, diluted in 1 C water. -Add masala powder, cilantro and lemon juice. Stir well. - Coat the bread roll halves with Amul butter and a little garlic paste and place, face down on the griddle to lightly brown.

*Pao Bhaji Masala

Kashmiri chili powder
1.5 tsp Coriander powder
2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/4 tsp Garam masala
1 tsp Cumin (jeera)seeds
1/2 tsp Amchur (mango powder)
1 tsp Cloves,
1/2 t Hing (Asafoateda),
1/2 t Black Salt
pinch Salt to taste
~Toast Cumin seeds and grind to powder with cloves. Mix together all spices
Tomatoes grilling for pao bhaji at Chowpatty Beach, Mumbai
Whatchu talkin' 'bout Willis?! -circa 1983 Amul as an alternative energy source. Meet Amul's mascot, the Utterly Butterly Amul Girl, famous for her witty comments on current affairs across the globe. The Amul company started as a cooperative of dairy farmers from the Kheda District of Gujrat in 1946 in an attempt to eliminate the middleman and ensure that profits go directly to the farmers. The co-op is now owned by over 2 million individual dairy farmers in Gujrat. This system ensures small scale production while enabling the farmers to market and distribute collectively.

posted by Rajah @ 1/25/2006 12:55:00 AM

Tune: Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition Was In by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

5 comments:

Vvek said...

the first picture looks like dabeli.

and the reason, he might have told you he uses AMUL butter, is because back in the late 80's/early 90s a lot of the street vendors used local or home made butter.

and AMUL being slightly more expensive & a well branded product. more & more people preferred vendors who used amul.

another quick story about pav bhaji : the myth is it was accidently invented by the egg bhurji walas (who are very hard to find now), when one day he ran out of eggs, and made up a concoction of vegetables & masalas to keep feeding his customers.

i dont know how much of this is true, but this is the only origin story i have heard.

Soul Cocina said...

Thanks Vvek!

I love it when there is more information in the comments than in the actual post. I actually use my own ghee or ghee from Ancient Organics to make Pav Bhaji, but i wanted to share the recipe from the street food book as it is.

"Indian Pizza" = Dabeli. good to know. There are many different versions of "pizza" in Indian hotels and trendy cafes, but I love these dabelis that I see on many poa bhajiwalla's grills.

thansk for visiting.

Vvek said...

always glad to share,

if you have visited any of the indian grocery stores; vijaya & amul ghee come highly recommended.

and dabeli is a close relative of pav bhaji from gujrat, which is quite close to bombay, as you may recall.

the difference is, dabelis are slightly on the sweeter side & include some pomegranate & coconut, depending on the vendor. and the bhaji is stuffed into the bread, rather than being served on the side.

another cousin of the pav bhaji is the mysore masala dosa, where in the bhaji is mixed & mashed right on the dosa, in a matter of minutes, while the dosa cooks to perfect crispiness.

p.s. today's kala chana methi was incredibly delicious. looking forward to more of your orignal indian recipes

Soul Cocina said...

Thanks Vvek!
A big compliment coming from a Mumbaikar.
Always a pleasure to serve you.
I've only made a few Pav Bhajis in my time and dabelis are new to me.. I've only tried them once or twice and have never attempted to cook them.

Mysor masala dosa however is one of my favorites to eat and cook. Dosas spread with a chile garlic chutney before being filled with bhaji and folded into a triangle. I have not found anywhere in SF that makes them great... I'll have to make a batch soon.

I'm learning a lot from your comments and becoming inspired to cook more Indian dishes. peace

Unknown said...

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