Mumbai Pav Bhaji
Pav Bhaji, a popular Indian street food, made in an Instant Pot. Pav Bhaji is made with potatoes and vegetables cooked in a tomato base and enjoyed with pav.
Pav Bhaji, a popular Indian street food, made in an Instant Pot. Pav Bhaji is made with potatoes and vegetables cooked in a tomato base and enjoyed with pav.
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons butter
- cilantro
- 8 cloves garlic
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 red bell pepper (chopped)
- 2 tablespoons butter (or oil)
- 2 onions (chopped)
- 5 medium tomatoes (chopped)
- 3 whole kashmiri
- 4 medium potatoes (peeled and chopped)
- 3 in carrots (cutpieces)
- 2 cup cauliflower (cut in small pieces)
- 1 cup green peas
- 2 tablespoons pav bhaji masala
- 2 1/2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
- 10 pav (or dinner rolls )
- 1/2 onion (chopped)
- Carbohydrate 4.51660166697813 g
- Cholesterol 10.1677083376937 mg
- Fat 3.95280250164496 g
- Fiber 0.891616649399921 g
- Protein 1.18413708336423 g
- Saturated Fat 2.45826750104177 g
- Serving Size 1 1 serving (67g)
- Sodium 1054.36170834605 mg
- Sugar 3.62498501757821 g
- Trans Fat 0.302475416781821 g
- Calories 56 calories
Step-by-step
- Soak red whole chili in 1/2 cup water for 15 mins. Grind chili, ginger and garlic along with the water to a paste.
- Start Instant Pot in Sauté mode and heat 2 tablespoons of butter in it. Add onions and sauté for 3 minutes. Add bell pepper and sauté for another 2 minutes.
- Add tomatoes, pav bhaji masala and salt. Add the ground chili paste. Add potatoes, carrots, cauliflower and green peas. Mix well.
- Change the setting to manual mode for 8 minutes with vent sealed. When the Instant Pot beeps, release the pressure naturally. Open and use an immersion blender to coarsely grind the ingredients.
- Change to Sauté mode and let the bhaji boil for a minute. Mix in the lemon juice.
- Bhaji is ready to be served. Garnish with cilantro and chopped onions.
- Slice each pav or dinner rolls in two halves.
- Heat butter on a pan and place the sliced pav on it. Lightly toast on one side and then turn to toast on the other side.
- Pav are ready to be served with bhaji.
- The real Mumbai pav bhaji is always made with butter. However you can prepare it will oil too.
- I recommend using Kashmiri chili, as that enhances the color of the bhaji. If you don't have it, use another whole chili or red chili/cayenne powder.
- Vary with your choice of vegetables.
Struggling with a strict 30-minute window requires equipment efficiency that transforms raw vegetables into a cohesive mash without constant supervision. Using an electric pressure cooker traps steam to break down rigid pectin walls in potatoes, carrots, and cauliflower much faster than boiling on a stovetop.
Chemical Interactions in the Spice Base
Fats act as a solvent for fat-soluble flavor compounds found in the pav bhaji masala and ground chili paste. Sautéing onions and bell peppers in butter for five minutes initiates the Maillard reaction, developing caramelized notes that balance the acidic sharpness of five chopped tomatoes. Kashmiri chilis provide capsaicin heat alongside water-soluble pigments called capsanthin, which tint the entire mixture a deep red without requiring artificial food dyes. Stirring in one tablespoon of lemon juice at the end lowers the overall pH, instantly brightening the heavy starches.
Fresh Versus Preserved Components
Dry spices or stored chili peppers yield different pungency levels compared to fresh produce, requiring adjustments to maintain proper balance. Immersion blenders achieve a coarse texture rather than a completely smooth purée, retaining visible vegetable fibers that hold onto toasted bread when served with butter-crisped dinner rolls.
