Mumbai Pav Bhaji Recipe | Vegan Pav Bhaji Recipe | How to Make Pau Bhaji | Best Mumbai Pav Bhaji

When I was in the USA with my husband at University, I met a young lady from Maharastra and we became good friends. We exchanged recipes and she taught me how to make Pav Bhaji just like they do in Mumbai. In this blog & video, I'll share the recipe with you with just one small change - I won't be adding butter in order to make it vegan. But trust me, you won't even miss the butter as this recipe is so good and so flavourful. I've served this dish to many people (non vegan) and they just love it! No-one has ever missed the butter!

I do hope you'll give this recipe a go and enjoy it as much as we do at home!

Mumbai-Style Pav Bhaji Recipe Prep Time: 1:30 minutes (Approx)

Resting Time: 3-5 hours (Recommended)

Serves 4-6 People

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Small Head Cauliflower Florets (520g)

• 2 Peppers Cut Up (265g)

• 1 Medium Carrot (100g)

• 50g Green Beans

• 75g Frozen Green Peas

• 3 Medium Potatoes (425g), Peeled & Diced

• 1 tsp Salt for Boiling

• 1/4 Cup (60ml) Water for Boiling

• 2 Medium Onions (220g), Chopped

• 1/4 Cup (60ml) Oil

• 3 Medium Tomatoes (290g), Chopped

• 2 Tbspn Ginger-Garlic-Chili Paste

• 4 tsp Pav Bhaji Masala

• 1 tsp Salt

• 8-12 Soft, White Bread Rolls

• Butter or Vegan Butter for Frying Bread

• Chopped Coriander, Onions, Tomatoes, Green Chilis, Lemon slices & Fried Bread to garnish

METHOD:

Cut up the cauliflower, carrot, pepper & potatoes into about 1 inch sized pieces and place them in a colander. Add the beans and peas and then rinse everything under running water. Let this drain.

Then place the drained vegetables in a pressure cooker, your Instant Pot or in a pot ready for boiling. Add 1 tspn of salt and then pour over ¼ Cup water. Pressure cook for 3 minutes in a pressure cooker, 4-5 minutes in the IP then let the pressure release naturally. If using the stove top, you may need to increase the water slightly and cook until the vegetables are cooked through and fairly soft.

Meanwhile, chop up the onions and tomatoes.

Heat up oil in a large frying pan.

Add the onions until they are nice & golden.

Then add the ginger-garlic-chili paste, Pav Bhaji Masala and salt and fry this for about 1 minute.

Add the chopped tomatoes. Fry this covered on a medium-low heat until the tomatoes are softened.

When the pressure on the pressure cooker has released, drain the vegetables, reserving the water in case it is needed.

Return the vegetables to the pressure cooker and mash them with a potato masher.

Add this to the tomato mix once the tomatoes are softened and mix it in well.

Cook this, covered, on a fairly low heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently. Then turn off the heat. Let this curry/bhaji sit so the flavours can meld.

When ready to serve, reheat the curry uncovered for 5-8 minutes, stirring regularly. Some of the moisture will evaporate.

Taste the bhaji (curry) and add salt, butter (optional) or more spice if desired.

Serve with buns cut in half and shallow-fried in butter or vegan spread. Serve the fried buns with the bhaji sprinkled with chopped onions, tomatoes, coriander and chilis and serve with a slice of lemon. Enjoy!

NOTE: I recommend The following brand of Pav Bhaji Masala which is available on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

UK 1 Packet: or 2 Packets: USA 1 Packet: or 2 Packets: