Pav Bhaji Masala Recipe

My hubby is not much fan of Pav Bhaji. In India, you can easily find it in restaurants, i was fulfilling my taste buds. After moving to aboard, I completely forgot this wonderful recipe of Pav Bhaji, a famous street food of Mumbai, India. Recently one of my neighboring friend had made at her home and she gave me to taste. It kick started my carving and provoke me to cook for myself. Yesterday I got all my ingredients and made this wonderful dish. And to my surprise, even my hubby enjoyed a lot and he even commented that it tastes better than hotels :) that’s a green single for me to try again.  Here is the recipe and enjoy this yummy dish where ever you are :)

It delights to see butter melts in bhaji/curry and bhaji melts in our mouth!

Ingredients:
Vegetables:
Carrot – 1/2 Cup (diced)
Cauliflower – 2 cups (florets)
Potato – 1 cup (diced)
Fresh Beans – 1 cup (chopped)
Onion – 1 cup (diced)
Capsicum – 1/2 cup (diced)
Green Peas – ½ cup
Tomato – 2 cups (diced)
Jeera / Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
Ginger & Garlic Paste – 2 tsp
Pav Bhaji Masala – 1 tbsp (Blend of Indian ground spices) Available in Indian store
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Red Chilli Powder – 1 tsp
Butter – 4 tbsp
Salt to Taste

Method:

Step 01) Wash and chop all the above mentioned vegetables and cook them in pressure cooker for 2 whistles. Drain the water and preserve some water for later use

 

Step 02) Heat the pan with 2 tsp of butter in medium flame and add the cumin seeds and fry for 1 min. and then onion and saute them for 2 mins. Then add ginger garlic paste and fry till onion turns to pink and then add dices capsicum

 

Step 03) Then add green peas followed by tomatoes and fry them nicely and mushy till oil separates

 

Step 04) Add all the spices (turmeric, red chili powder, pav bhaji masala and salt) and mix nicely with fried vegetables and cook till raw smell of masala(ground spices powder) disappears and then add 1 cup of cooked water from the vegetables and bring them to boil

   

Step 05) Add the cooked vegetables and smash them nicely with the potato smasher tool. Turn the heat into low flame and cook for 3 to 4 mins . till everything marinates with thick gravy format. 

 

Heating the Pav/Bread:

1. Heat a tawa with 1 tsp of butter. Slice the pav/bread horizontally place the pav and roast the bread till the pieces are light browned.

Serving:

Serve the bhaji/curry on plate and garnish with chopped onion, fresh coriander leaves and small piece of butter on top (butter gives awesome taste while serving) and  serve hot roasted pav/ bread with small lemon widgets. Squeeze the lemon juice according to your taste buds to the curry and enjoy the heaven in your own dining table.

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Finger Millet Pancake/ Ragi Rotti - Authentic and Instant Version Recipes

As I started using and knowing benefits of Ragi/ Finger Millet I learned many dishes of this cereal. Here is one more super healthy easy breakfast dish. You can prepare Ragi Rotti/ Finger Millet Pancake in two versions. Authentic style is very soft and you can roll rotti as thin as possible. Another one is Instant format mixing Rava/Semollina(coarse wheat flour) and Rice flour as a bonding agent to ragi. This is little hard and thick in shape. The key ingredient of Avarekalu / Mochai/ Lilva beans is what makes this rotti more special. But it was not available in our nearby area Indian store, I substituted with green peas and sweet corn. Whichever your preference version of recipe enjoy this super healthy ragi rotti. 

Authentic Style Version:

Ragi Flour/ Finger Millet Flour – 1 cup
Water – ½ cup
Salt to Taste

~ Mixing Ingredients:
Jeera/Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
Onion chopped – 1 big no.
Green Chili – 2 nos
Green Peas – ½ cup
Sweet Corn – ½ cup
Mochai/Avarekalu/Lilva Beans – 1 cup
Fresh Coriander leaves – ½ cup
Curry leaves – 5 to 6 leaves

Method:

Step 01) In a bowl add ragi flour and salt without lumps mix it with 1 cup of water 

Step 02) Put a reasonable sized heavy bottom pan on the range and heat 1 cup of water and bring to boil

 

Step 03) Keep the flame in slow and then add the ragi flour mixture and stir it nicely until it makes nice shiny dough 

 

Step 04) Let them to cool for a bit and then add all other ingredients like cumin seeds, onion, green chilli, green peas and corn (if you are using frozen one then defroster the corn and green peas in microwave for 1 mins. Drain the water and then add) or avarekalu/mochai/lilva beans, coriander leaves, curry leaves and salt mix it nicely as soft pliable dough

 

Step 05) Divide the dough in to small orange size and roll them as a ball. Heat a plain griddle, drizzle oil. Place the ball in center of griddle and wet your fingers in bowl of cold water and start stretching/pat them into flat rotti roll as thin as possible.  Take care of your fingers while doing this, if you are a beginner to the cooking, pat the rotti on plastic sheet and then transfer it to griddle.

 

Step 06) Apply oil on top side and cook. Turn over the rotti and apply oil on other side also. Cook till rotti is crisp and little brown

 

Serving: Serve hot with any of your preferred chutney. It goes well with coconut chutney & onion tomato chutney.

Instant Version:

RagiFlour /Finger Millet Flour – ¾ cup
Rava/Semolina/Coarse Wheat Flour – 2 tbsp
Rice Flour – 3 tbsp

~ Mixing Ingredients:
Jeera/Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
Onion chopped – 1 big no.
Green Chili – 2 nos
Green Peas – ½ cup
Sweet Corn – ½ cup
Lilva Beans/Mochai – 1 cup
Fresh Coriander Leaves – ½ cup
Curry leaves – 5 to 6 leaves

Method:

Step 01) Take a big bowl and add all ingredients and knead and make smooth dough slowly adding water. Let it sit for 10 minutes

 

Step 02) Follow the above step 5 on wards from the authentic style version recipe instruction.

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KIDNEY BEANS MASALA | RAJMA MASALA RECIPE

I grew up in south India in my childhood I never had this Rajma/Kidney Beans. May be that time Kidney beans was not available in all parts of India or may be my mom was not aware of this bean! This dish was introduced by my North Indian friend when we had a party at her home. We all really liked the flavorful creamy texture rich gravy Rajma Masala and I learned the recipe from her. It is the cooking process of raw onion and all spices which makes it so unique and irresistible. Nothings beat the flavorful taste of Rajma which marinates with fresh cream and spices.

Ingredients:

Rajma /Kidney Beans – 1 cup
Indian Bay Leaf – 2 leaves
Onion – 1 big no.
Tomato – 2 big no.
Ginger and garlic paste – 1 tsp each
Jeera /Cumin Seeds – 2 tsp
Garam Masala – 2 tsp
Red Chili Powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric Powder – ¼ tsp
Coriander seeds Powder – 1 tsp
Kasoori Methi/ Fenugreek leaves Powder– 1 tsp
Whole Milk/ Cream – ½ cup
Salt to Taste

Method:
Step 01) Wash the Rajma/Kidney beans and soak them for 4 hrs and cook them in pressure cooker up to 3 whistles along with bay leaves. If you forgot to soak then cook them up to 5 whistles using 2" water on top of rajma. Discard the bay leaves and reserve the cooked water for later use.

Step 02) Heat the pan with 2 tsp of oil and add the cumin seeds once it is crackled add puree of onion and saute  them for 3 minutes. Or you can add the chopped onion instead

  

Step 03) Add the ginger and garlic paste and saute for 2 minutes and then add all the masala powders like garam masala, red chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander seeds powder and salt; fry them nicely till raw smell disappears. (Adding all the masalas in onion gravy gives an authentic taste to the curry).

 

Step 03) Add the puree of tomato and fry them for 2 more minutes 

 

Step 04) Add the kidney beans, add 1 cup pf cooked water of kidney beans and whole milk or cream (adding milk/cream is what gives the rich creamy texture to the curry) cover the lid and cook for 5 more minutes so that all rajma beans nicely marinated with the masala and creamy gravy.

 

Serving: Serve with chapatti or with steamed rice.

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