Hritvi's Pav Bhaji, full of fresh veggies

A very popular street snack in the city of Mumbai, Pav Bhaji is a flavourful mash of veggies (the bhaji) which is usually eaten with toasted bread (pav). 

It's a very adjustable recipe and is extremely helpful when you need to clean out your fridge as you can use any vegetables you like! 

Here's my usual go-to recipe that serves 2 people: 

Ingredients

• Cauliflower
• 2-3 potatoes
• 2 big onions (chopped)
• 2 tomatoes (chopped)
  
• 2-3 green chillies (chopped)
• Vegetables of choice – preferably carrots, peas, bell peppers/capsicum, or any other firm vegetable
• 2-3 tbsp ginger and garlic paste
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 2-3 tsp pav bhaji masala
• 2 tbsp coriander (chopped)
• Salt to taste
• Lime or lemon
• Butter
• Bread (toasted)

Method

1. First, cut the cauliflower and potatoes. Ensure they are steamed or boiled, including peas or carrots, if being used. They should be of mashable consistency.
2. Dice the onions, tomatoes, bell peppers into small squares and green chillies into small circles. Keep some onions aside for garnish.
3. Add oil to the pan and let it heat. Add the green chilly when it heats, let it sizzle for a bit.
4. Add the ginger garlic paste in the oil. Let it sizzle for some time and then sauté the onions in the mixture.
5. Add the tomato, bell pepper and all the boiled vegetables in the pan. Keep mixing continuously as you do this.
6. Add the turmeric powder, followed by red chilly powder and coriander powder. Mix the spices (masala) and also add water to make the mash slightly runny. Then, add the pav bhaji masala in the mash of veggies.
7. Let the bhaji cook on low flame. Add some butter for flavour and consistency. Take the bhaji off the flame after 5 minutes.
8. Chop coriander and a lemon/lime for garnish. Also, gather the onions kept aside for garnish.
9. To assemble your pav bhaji, garnish the bhaji with onions, coriander and some freshly squeezed lemon juice. Enjoy hot with some deliciously toasted pav!

By Hritvi Acharya, Lilian Knowles House

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