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The secrets to a super healthy pav bhaji

Pav Bhaji is Mumbai's most popular street food, that has reached hotels and restaurants alike. It tingles the tastebuds with a myriad of flavours. Serve with hot Amul buttered Pav! This is my version of HEALTHY PAV BHAJI.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 3 serving
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 70 grams soya chunks
  • 8 to 12 chillies dried red (depending on how spicy the chilli is-I use a mix of Kashmiri Bedgi)).
  • 8 cloves garlic , peeled .
  • 1/2 cup water hot .
  • 4 potatoes medium .
  • 200 grams cauliflower florets .
  • 400 ml tomato puree .
  • 1 beetroot medium
  • 1/2 cup peas frozen or fresh , boiled and kept aside
  • 2 green capsicum medium sized , finely chopped
  • 1 onion large , finely chopped
  • 2 to 3 tbsps pav masala bhaji
  • 2 tsps salt
  • handful coriander chopped fresh
To Serve
  • onions Finely chopped
  • wedges lemon
  • pav whole wheat bread or to serve

Method
 

  1. In a bowl, place the dried red chillies and garlic-cover with xbd cup hot water and keep aside for 15 minutes. Once the chillies have rehydrated, grind them with the garlic to a fine paste, using some water. Keep aside.
  2. Bring 4 cups water to boil with 1 tsp salt and the soy chunks. When the water is boiling, lower the flame and simmer for 5-7 minutes, until the soya chunks are cooked.
  3. Drain the water using a sieve, and press out all the extra water from the chunks using the back of a cup. Grind coarsely (use the pulse function so that you don't make it into a fine paste) and keep aside.
  4. Peel and roughly chop the beet, potatoes. Wash and clean the cauliflower florets. Place them all together in a small pressure cooker with xbd tsp salt, 1 cup water and pressure cook for 10 minutes.
  5. Open when cool enough and mash with steel masher until you get a coarse puree. Keep aside.
  6. In a large pan, heat the oil. Add the finely chopped onion and capsicum and sautxe9 on medium flame for 7-8 mins until the onion are soft. Add the chilli-garlic paste, pav bhaji masala and sautxe9 for 3-4 mins on low flame.
  7. Add the coarsely ground soya chunks, sautxe9 until the seasonings are absorbed by this. Then add the mashed cooked vegetables, tomato puree, salt and bring to a simmer.
  8. Garnish with fresh coriander- serve with toasted pav, with a sprinkling of finely chopped onions and a lemon wedge. Since we have made this so much healthier, you can go ahead and add a sprinkling of grated cheese to the bhaji before tucking in.

Notes

If you prefer this to be a smooth puree, then run all the mashed veggies and soya mash in a blender until smooth and then use in recipe. My recipe gives you a chunky bhaji. If you find that it's too dry, you can thin it down with some water and bring it to a simmer.
This bhaji can also be used to add a twist to a Masala Dosa by smearing the bhaji inside of a dosa and folding it over.
This dish is a perfect crowd pleaser, you can easily double the quantities and prepare this for a large party along with some other mumbai chaats like bhel puri, pani puri, added to the menu.