Pav Bhaji -homemade yet streetwise

Pav Bhaji hardly needs any introduction. It is one of the most popular street foods in Maharashtra, originating in the city of Bombay. It is said ( several internet sources) that mill workers in the 60s hardly got enough time to have any proper food during their short breaks. And Pav bhaji was born.

Pav bhaji is made with a melange of vegetables, typically potatoes, cauliflower, green peas, peppers and tomatoes, a bunch of spices, and a slab of butter. Everything is mashed up really good and this is dished up with dinner rolls fried or toasted in butter. I remember when the first Pav bhaji cart showed up in our city. It was everyone's favourite thing. I think the winning factor here is the unique spicy taste, the tang - coming from loads of tomatoes and fresh squeezed lemons, and the butter which clogs the arteries but lifts your senses.

I have typically made many healthier versions of this, using Country crock or 'I can' believe..' type spreads, and lotsa of different kinds of veggies. But this one is true to its street roots. Please feel free to add any other veggies you like, or use margarine or butter substitutes.

I have also made my own dry spice mix here, instead of using the standard Everest or Badshah pav bhaji masala. It makes a big difference and is worth a try.

The recipe is as follows -

Ingredients -

potatoes - 4-5 medium

tomatoes - 4-5 roma or vine ripe

onions - 2 medium

cauliflower - 1 small head

peas - 1 cup

green bell pepper - 1

carrot - 1

dinner rolls/dollar rolls - 4 per person or more

Butter - 2 sticks or more OR 150 g

salt to taste

1-2 Tbsp oil

1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger and garlic

1-2 cups tomato puree or tomato sauce

Garnish -

finely chopped cilantro

Lemon wedges

finely chopped onion

Dry spice Mix -

1 Tbsp dhania seed or coariander seed

1 Tbsp jeera seed or cumin seeds

1 Tbsp amchur powder or dry mango powder

1 tsp sunth or dry ginger powder

1 tsp fennel seeds or saunf

2 large black cardamom

1 inch cinnamon

10 cloves

2 tsp black peppercorns

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

2 star anise

Method -

1) For the dry spice mix - Lightly roast the seeds without burning. Cool and powder in a spice grinder. Add the remaining powders and mix well. Transfer to an air tight jar.

This is cayenne or mirchi free and salt free, and lets you add the spice level without increasing the heat or making the dish too salty.

2) Boil the potatoes, peel, mash and set aside.

3) Chop onions and tomatoes. Chop the cauliflower florets in a food processor until they are almost a fine powder, or grate them. Thaw the peas and puree them in the food processor.

Grate the carrot. Chop the green pepper also in the food processor. Set these aside seperately.
4) Heat oil in a heavy bottomed skillet. Use veg or canola oil.

5) Add the chopped onions and saut them until soft. Add the ginger and garlic. Make sure it does not burn or stick.

6) Add the chopped tomatoes and keep frying until the oil leaves the sides.

7) Seasoning method - This dish has a lot of layers, and a Big yield. So I always season in layers or 'as I go'. I add a little salt and the Pav Bhaji Masala after every vegetable I add. This makes sure that the veggies cook in the spices and take on an intense flavor.

8) generally my quick method for this is to pressure cook all veggies together, and then dumo them in the onion tomato masala we fried earlier. But as I said, this time I am following the street method, and the slightly slower method. It makes a HUGE difference taste wise.

9) Add carrots to the onion tomato mixture in the wok. Season with a little salt and pav bhaji masala. Add a dab of butter.

10) Fry the carrots for a few minutes until they soften. Use a masher to mash everything together. Add the grated cauliflower.

11) Repeat above steps. Add seasonings and butter. Let it cook until the cauliflower gets incorporated into the whole mixture. Keep mashing periodically.

12) Add the green peas and green pepper now. Again add seasonings and butter. Mix well and stir together. Mash periodically.

13) Add the mashed potaotes now. Use the masher to mix it all together. Check seasonings. Add some more butter.

14) Add the tomato sauce or tomato puree. Check all seasonings and add enough salt, cayenne and spice mix to your taste.

15) Heat some butter in a pan. Lightly toast the dinner rolls or bread in the pan in the butter.

16) To serve - Dish up the bhaji or vegetable in a bowl. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice on top. Add chopped onions and cilantro. Dig in!!

Additional Method -

If you have ever seen a pav bhaji stall or 'thela', you know they have this really big griddle on which the bhaji is already made. TO serve the bhaji, they heat some butter in the center, add spices, and add a ladle or two of the veggie mix. They add some water ( and red color too), and mix it all up before serving.

I used this method at home this time. Even though time consuming, it lets you customize a lot. You can have a base bhaji version that is mildly spiced and then you can add as much butter as needed for a person, and spices to taste. This is also a good way to extend it or thin it out for more number of people.

The above recipe easily yields 10-12 large servings.

Pav Bhaji is a popular street food and is a must try at home.

SBDP or Sev Batata Dahi Puri - anytime delight!

Chaat is that Indian delight which can awaken your senses any time of the day, month or the year, whether its sweltering heat outside or a snowy blizzard. It has several taste elements such as hot, sour, sweet, salty and is probably an acquired taste. I remember eating bhel and pani puri even as a kid, with eyes and nose streaming but still enjoying the experience. It's always been something of a forbidden delight, since it is readily available by the roadside, is very tempting and a complete cleanliness/hygeine disaster. Chaat is made up of a myraid of simple ingredients that are mixed together in various proportions, by hand!!

With an iron will to overcome aching tummies and infections, my mom took over making this stuff at home a long time ago. And over the years, we have added to our chaat repertiore. The SBDP is a popular name mostly in western Maharashtra, and is called Sev puri or dahi puri elsewhere in the country, depending on how many things are added. Sev is fried chickpea flour noodles, available anywhere, Batata or potato is your typical boiled spud, Dahi is of course yogurt, and Puris are small deep fried hollow - puris. All these are readily available in India of course, and in any Indian grocery store in the US.

There are a lot of small ingredients that make up this whole dish. You absolutely need Chat masala ( black salt giving the unique flavor here), unless you make your own. Everest, MDH, Badshash are some of the popular brands. I would stay away from Shan here.

You will need an optional or highly recommended green chutney, which is mostly cilantro/coriander with chili, and gives color and heat.

The Date-tamarind chutney will add a sweet and sour component and is an essential ingredient. Its easy to make this from scratch and store it in a jar in your fridge, or you can safely go with Deep brand Tamarind-date chutney. Several other brands like Swad etc. also offer this. Deep frozen foods also has a coriander/cilantro chutney that you can buy and use here.

Once you have all your stuff lined up assembly line style, its easy to put this together. Unless you are up to speed here, I recommend only plating 3-4 at a time so that they don't go too soft and lose their crunch. The detailed method is as follows. I have tried to post step by step photos as much as possible.

Ingredients -

Ready made round puris - 25-50 or more

3-4 boiled medium potatoes

Sev - thin and plain salted only

plain yogurt - 1 lb

sugar, cayenne, chat masala to taste

Garnish -

1 cup finely chopped onion

1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro

Tamarind-date chutney -

1/2 cup dry tamarind

1 cup chopped dates

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

salt to taste

sugar/brown sugar if needed

Greeen chutney -

1 bunch cilantro

1/2 deseeded jalapeno or serrano

salt to taste

pinch of sugar

1/2 lime or lemon squeezed

Method -

1) Boil and mash potatoes. Add a dash of cayenne and salt to season them per choice. Keep this aside.

2) For the yogurt mix - Make this beforehand, as this will taste better when very cold. Take a container, at least the 1 lb one of your favourite low fat PLAIN yogurt. The fat free ones are very sour and the full fat can be too heavy taking away from the taste, so I recommend low fat for this. Add salt to taste, and enough sugar - yes, plain white sugar- to make it sweet. Whisk this or beat it with a fork to make a smooth mixture and set aside. Please do not use a stick blender etc.

Refrigerate this!

3) For the green chutney - Blend cilantro, chili, salt, sugar and lemon juice in a blender or a food processor until you have a fine paste. This need not be very liquid. You will need very little of this anyway.

4) For the Tamarind - date chutney -

4.1) Soak the tamarind for some time in hot water. Remove all seeds and other fibre type matter.

4.2) Soak the dates in warm water.

4.3) After the above two are soft enough to brave your blender, blend them together and transfer to a small stock pot.

4.4) Add the salt, cumin, cayenne and bring to a boil. Simmer until slightly syrupy or until it coats the back of a spoon. Taste it and add some jaggery/brown sugar/sugar per your taste. This should taste sweetish but still have the tang of tamarind.

Alternate crude method -

This is my latest favourite. Dump all ingredients in a pot. Add enough water to cover it. Bring to a boil and let simmer. Add more water if needed. Eventually the dates dissolve and everything comes together. Then just strain it and your chutney is ready!

You can store this chutney in a jar/container and keep it in a fridge for a week or two, or even better, Freeze it.

Note -- Please take care that this cold at the time of assembling the main dish. If you have just made it, add some ice cubes to bring down the temperature, or pop in the freezer for a few minutes.

5) Have your sev ready in a bowl or container. This is the easiest thing, you just have to pour it out of a packet :).

6) Now to assemble the whole thing -

If you have those fancy ketchup/mustard type bottles with spouts, you can now fill 3 of these with green chutney, tamarind chutney and yogurt each. I used an old fashioned spoon. Its OK to be sloppy here!

6.1) Take 3-4 puris in a small plate. Pierce them with your thumb to break Only the top part. You might destroy a few before you 'get it'.

6.2) Add a little - 1 tsp - of potato mixture to each puri.

6.3) Add some sev.

6.4) Add some green chutney - a dab - or a sprinkle of cayenne.

6.5) Add some tamarind chutney.

6.6) Ladle in the yogurt mixture until the 'puri' is full.

6.7) Now sprinkle more sev, yogourt, green/tamarind chutneys over the top.

6.8) Garnish with chopped onion and cilantro.

6.9) Sprinkle loads of chaat masala and cayenne if you want more heat.

7) Hand this over, unselfishly, to the first person in line drooling over it and start making another batch. Await your turn patiently until you get to taste some.

Sev puri or Dahi sev puri or SBDP or SPDP - anything you call it, is a great pick-me-up that is sure to bring a smile to your lips. This can easily be assembled by using maximum store bought ingredients.

If you are someone who has never ventured into the 'chaat' arena of Indian cuisine, I urge you to try this simple wonder. Bon Appetit!

Black bean soup cookoff

I almost posted two recipes this weekend, a Spanish paella and a chickpea salad, but decided against it since I did not take pictures. But I think they were winners and I will revive them some other time. This weekend was quite an achievement, since we did not eat out at all, nor even get any take out. Whats more, I even took home made food when we went to see the Fall Colours. Skyline Drive is fabulous this time of the year, and not to be missed.

Fall has set in here in VA, some would even say winter (;)), and there is a nice chill in the air. So a big bowl of hot steaming soup seemed to be the call of the day. I had also finally soaked some black beans that I had bought a long time ago, and that I found hidden in some corner of my pantry. I also had a butternut squash that I had to use up. But there were varied opinions on the method to be used to make the soup. One wanted a very spicy Indian like thing and I leaned towards mexican. So I came up with this idea of having a cook off tv style - A black bean shorba versus a vegetable and black bean soup. I added some butternut squash for colour and to keep with the Fall theme. I was not sure how it would mingle with the other veggies and beans, but in the end, I think it had a pretty neutral effect. It added a touch of sweetness and did not take away from the main flavours.

I decided to use mostly Mexican kind of spices in my recipe. I started with the usual mirepoix and added green and red peppers. I used chipotles in adobo to add a smoky flavour, and boy, did it work ! You can easily get a small can of chipotles pretty cheap in Walmart in the Mexican foods aisle. I used only two, which was quite enough for me for a big pot of soup. But you can use less or more depending on your heat tolerance. I used oregano and cumin as the main flavouring in addition to the chipotles. Nowadays, I heat up some cumin seeds in the microwave or a pan so that they are smoky and just grind them on the spot using my mortar and pestle. This 'fresh grinding' process gives it tons more flavour than if you use store bought cumin or jeera powder. I decided to use the butternut squash in place of corn as a starchy component, just to try something new. I debated over using tomatos in some form, but finally left them out, just adding fresh lime juice instead for a touch of tang. I garnished this with fresh chopped cilantro and lime juice and served it with a fresh whole grain baguette. Another serving idea is to scoop some rice on top, gumbo like.

I think this recipe is completely vegan, except perhaps the touch of optional honey that I added. This is also fat free and can easily pass muster as an 'Eat to Live' recipe.


Recipe #1 - Chipotle Black Bean and Vegetable soup

Ingredients:

2 cups black beans (soaked overnight and pressure cooked) or 2 cans
2 small onions
2 carrots
2 stalks celery
3-4 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
juice of 1 lime, freshly squeezed
chipotles in adobo - 2 - chopped
1 cup chopped butternut squash
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried crushed oregano
1 tbsp cumin poweder freshly ground
4 cups water or 2 cups each water and veg stock


Chop the onion, carrot and celery in small pieces of roughly the same size. Chop the peppers into similar sized pieces and chop butternut squash into slightly larger chunks. Crush and finely chop the garlic. I prefer fresh garlic only and do not recommend the one you get in a bottle.

Add the onions to a big non stick pot and sautee them for a while. Apart from being oil free, this method will char the onions and give them a smoky flavor. If the onions start sticking, add a little water, 1/4 cup or so at a time and keep sauteing. Add the carrots and celery gradually along with the bay leaf. When these are slightly softened, add the peppers. Also add the chopped chipotles and the garlic. Sautee this mixture till the vegetables look slightly cooked. The more you cook now, the lesser time it will take later for the soup to come together. Add the butternut squash and sautee for a minute. Add the black beans now and the water. I would have liked to add some vegetable stock at this point, but i did not have any on hand, and for some reason did not feel like adding a bouillion cube. Add all the other spices - paprika, oregano and cumin at this point. Add a touch of honey - optional. Bring this to a boil. Put a lid on it and let it simmer for 15-20 mins till all the vegetables are cooked and the thickness is to your liking. Add the lime juice at the end after switching off the heat and garnish with lots of fresh coriander/cilantro.

Serve hot with bread or rice, garnished with more lime juice, cilantro and black pepper.


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Now the other recipe - Black bean Shorba! I am just giving the recipe here without prolonging this post which I fear may have become too long. Who was the winner of this cookoff? Our tingling tastebuds, and our tummies, which were thorughly satisfied :)

Recipe #2 - Black bean Shorba

cumin - 1 tspn
black pepper - 2 tspn
Bay leaves - 1-2
cinnamon - 1/2 inch
cloves - 4-6 pcs
onion - 1 medium
celery - 2 stalks cut in pcs
cayenne - 1 tsp

1. Soak black beans overnight for abt 12 hrs
2. pressure cook
3. in a deep pot add 1 tbsp of white butter and heat for 2-3 min untill it melts and sizzles
4. add cumin, bay leaves, clover, and cinnamon, and saute for 3 min
5. add onion and fry untill golden
6. add celery and saute another 2 min
7. add black pepper
8. add 1 cup black beans with 1 cup of stalk from the cooker
9. add 1 cup veg broth and bring to boil
10. garnish with cilantro and serve with garlic bread.

This is my maiden entry for a blog event, sra's legume love affair - fourth helping.