Messy Veggie Pav Bhaji Recipe

Indian cuisine is known across the world for its fantastic flavor derived from a wide variety of spices and herbs. It definitely falls into the comfort food category with lots of stew-like dishes and warm savory gravies. Wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe for messy veggie pav bhaji recipe. "I love cooking all types of Indian dishes because they tend to be full of vegetables and very plant forward," she says.

This recipe for pav bhaji has 12 different vegetables included, making "eating the rainbow" possible all in one meal. There is a fair amount of chopping going on here, but once you have done that, the meal comes together pretty quickly and easily. Pav bhaji is always served with dinner rolls (pav means small loaf of bread in Marathi) and is a complete meal. It also pairs nicely with other carbs, like rice. Read on to see how to make this popular Indian street food at home.

To make this recipe, we're going to spend some time in the produce department picking out all of the vegetables that go into this dish. You'll need some Yukon potatoes, onion, Serrano chiles, garlic, ginger root, Roma tomatoes, green cabbage, cauliflower, cilantro, red onion, grated carrots, and lemon. Head to the frozen aisle to grab some frozen peas. Then we'll need some pav bhaji masala, which is a blend of spices. "The blends can vary but for the most part they include coriander seeds, cumin seeds, pepper corn, fennel seeds, dried red chilis, cinnamon, cloves, black cardamom, amchur powder, star anise, green cardamoms, bay leaves, and ginger," Hahn says. "This makes for a very flavorful dish!" We will also need a few pantry staples like oil, salt, pepper, and then of course some dinner rolls and butter.

Grab a chef's knife and a large cutting board — we've got some chopping to do. Start by chopping the potatoes. These will be boiled and mashed, so no need to get too precise. Hahn buys organic potatoes and leaves the peels on. "Since a lot of the essential nutrients are contained in the peel, I usually opt for leaving the skins on, plus it's a time saver," Hahn shares.

You'll also need to chop the onion, chili, garlic, tomatoes, cabbage, and cauliflower. You want everything about the same size, so this means really going small with the cauliflower. Using a micro plane, grate the ginger. We're going to top our final dish with cilantro and red onion, so while we're in chopping mode, get those ready as well.

This next step is a simple one. Put the potatoes in a medium pot and cover with water. Put on the stove and bring the heat to high. Boil the potatoes for 10 minutes or until very tender. Take off the heat, cool, then mash with a potato masher and set aside.

Add the oil to a large pot and bring heat to medium high. Once hot, add in the onion, garlic, and chile. Cook for 10 minutes while stirring frequently and breaking down the tomatoes. Then add the ginger and tomatoes and cook for 10 more minutes. Now add in the mashed potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, peas, pav bhaji masala, salt, and pepper. "If you feel like you need a little more liquid you can add some water here starting with ¼ cup," Hahn shares.

The heavy lifting is done — cover the pot and reduce heat to low. Cook for 15 minutes and squeeze in the lemon juice which is our final touch. Then your flavorful messy veggie pav bhaji is ready to serve. Top with red onion, cilantro, serve with plenty of rolls and butter which are perfect for dipping into this masterpiece!