Pav Bhaji

Pav Bhaji is a popular street food in India. Pav means bun and bhaji is curry made with different vegetables.  The bhaji is a blend of different vegetables in an onion and tomato based gravy spiced with the aromatic pav bhaji masala.
It is easy to prepare and is nutritious too as it consists of number of vegetables. It is traditionally made with butter and is topped with butter before serving. To make it healthy I cook with oil and just top with little butter before serving. Sometimes I avoid that too.

Ingredients:

Potatoes(cut in cubes): 1 large
Peas: 1/2 cup
Carrots(chopped): 2
Beans(cut in pieces): 1/2 cup
Bell Pepper(cut in small pieces): 1
Onions: 1 large
Tomatoes: 2 medium-sized
Oil: 2 tbsp
Dried fenugreek leaves(Kasuri Methi): 1 tbsp
Pav Bhaji masala: 2 tbsp(available in Indian grocery stores)
Turmeric Powder: 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder: 1 tsp
Lime Juice: 1 tsp
Green chillies(cut in small pieces): 2
Buns

Procedure:

Boil the potatoes, carrots and beans in a pressure cooker and set them aside.
Add oil to a pan and when the oil is heated add the onions, turmeric powder and  green chillies,sprinkle some salt over the onions and cook them until they become soft.
Now add the ginger garlic paste and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the bell pepper and saute for 2-3 minutes.
Add the chopped tomatoes and cover the pan with a lid and cook for few minutes until the tomatoes become very soft. Add 1/2 cup of water to the tomatoes of required.
When the tomatoes are completely cooked, add the dried fenugreek leaves and the pav bhaji masala and mix well. Remove the carrots, beans and potatoes from the pressure cooker and save the water.
Now add the pressure cooked potatoes, carrots, beans to the onion tomato mixture and mash them with a potato masher.
Add the frozen green peas and mix them gently. Add  the pressure cooker water to the pan and cook for 10 minutes. Add the red chilli powder. Add the lime juice and mix. Adjust the salt.
Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with slightly toasted buns.
Toast the buns on a pan with little butter or oil.
Add chopped onions over the bhaji before serving.

Note: If using fresh green peas add the to the pan after the onions are cooked and before adding the tomatoes. They take little more time to cook then the frozen peas.
Tip: Curry can be made in excess and can be refrigerated for 3-4 days.
If you do not have pav bhaji masala, a tsp of cumin powder, a tsp of coriander powder and 1/2 tsp of garam masala can be used instead.

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Mysore Bonda

Mysore is the name of a city in India and Bonda is a deep fried flour dumpling. I have no clue why this is called Mysore bonda. May be the recipe originated in Mysore and got that name.

This is a perfect snack for the chilly evenings. All purpose flour is mixed with sour yogurt and the dumplings are deep fried in oil. Mysore bonda is a popular street food in South India - often sold along with Mirchi Bajjis(green peppers dipped in chickpea flour and deep fried in oil) in portable stalls on the street corners.








Ingredients:

All purpose flour: 2 cups
Sour yogurt: 1 cup
Onions, finely chopped: 1/2 cup(optional)
Cilantro, finely chopped: 2 tbsp
Ginger, grated: 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp
Green chillies, finely chopped: 1
Curry leaves: 5
Water: 1/4 cup
Baking soda: a pinch

Procedure:

Add the all purpose flour in a mixing bowl and add the cumin seeds, cilantro, salt, green chillies, onions and ginger and set it aside.
Take 1 cup of yogurt in a bowl and a quarter cup of water and whisk thoroughly.
Add the whisked yogurt to the AP flour mixing it without forming any lumps.
Add a pinch of baking soda and set the batter aside for an hour.
Add oil to the frying pan and when the oil is heated scoop out the batter with an ice cream scoop or with the hand and drop the dumplings in the oil.
Cook until the dumplings turn golden brown , remove them with a slotted spoon and drain the excess oil on a paper towel.

Tip: Make sure the oil is not over heated when you drop the dumplings. the dumplings change color very soon on the outside and inside will not be cooked well.

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Vegetable Cutlets

My mom used to make different varieties of snacks for us to eat by the time we returned from school and these vegetable cutlets were my all time favorite. She used to make something different and fresh every day.
She always tried to make them healthy using lot of vegetables and very little oil and she always served them with fresh fruits of the season.
My little kiddo is a very picky eater. So the other day I decided to make these cutlets for her.
I used potato, carrots, beans and green peas - all the vegetables that the kiddo loves.
She likes to eat cooked vegetables, but does not like them in curries or rice.
So, did she like the cutlets? No, can you believe that? She only wanted to eat her boiled veggies which is good. I was just trying to get her used to different foods.
Hubby was also not hungry so he did not eat them either.
What did I do - ate them for dinner and for breakfast next day. Glad I made something I like. I could finish them.




Ingredients:

• Potatoes: 2
• Carrots: 2
• Green Peas( fresh or frozen): 3/4 cup
• Green Beans: 1/2 cup
• Whole wheat bread: 2 slices
• salt to taste.
• Chopped Cilantro: 3 tbsp
• Cumin(Jheera) powder: 1/2 tsp
• Coriander(Dhania) powder: 1/2 tsp
• Garam masala: 1/4 tsp
• Aamchur powder: 1/2 tsp or you can use 1 tsp of lime juice.
• Egg: 1
• Oil

Procedure:

1. Chop potatoes, carrots and beans into medium sized pieces.
2. To a pressure cooker add these cut vegetables and green peas, add salt and little water just enough to cook the vegetables.
3. cook until you get 2 whistles.
4. While the vegetables are cooking, add the bread slices to the mixer or a food processor and grind for few seconds. you will get soft bread crumbs. Add the bread crumbs to a plate and set them aside.
5. beat the egg in a small bowl and set that aside.
6. Remove the pressure cooker lid and drain any excess water from the vegetables and slightly mash the cooked veggies.
7. Now add salt, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala, chopped cilantro and aamchur powder or the lime juice to the veggies and mix well.
8. Add 3 tbsp oil to a small pan and heat it.
9. Now take a big lemon size vegetable mixture in the hand and make into a small patty.
10. Slightly apply the egg around the patty with the hand or with a brush.
11. Do not dip it into the egg.
12. After the egg is applied, dip the patty in the bread crumbs and make sure it is coated well with the bread on all sides.
13. Now add the patty coated with bread to the pan and fry until until it turns brown on both the sides.
14. Repeat the process with the remaining veggie mixture.
15. Serve with ketchup.

Note: You can even deep fry them in oil for more crispy cutlets. You can add some green chillies or red chilli powder to the veggies.

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