Pao Bhaji (Vegetables on Rolls)
"This makes a good picnic food. May use pita bread instead of rolls. The vegetable mix can easily be made in advance and refrigerated. The special spice pao bhaji masala adds a unique taste."
- Ready In:
- 45mins
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Yields:
-
12 rolls
ingredients
- 4 potatoes
- 1⁄2 head cauliflower
- 2 carrots
- 1 cup green peas
- 1⁄4 cup channa dal
- 2 onions, chopped
- 4 tomatoes, sliced
- 12 bread rolls (or buns)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- oil, to pan-fry the rolls
-
Seasonings
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 2 whole red chilies
- 1⁄2 teaspoon red chili powder
- 2 teaspoons pao bhaji masala (available at Indian grocery stores)
directions
- Wash, peel, and cut the potatoes.
- Wash, trim, and chop (or grate) the cauliflower and carrots in small pieces.
- Rinse and drain dal and put in a 2-quart pot to boil in 2 cups water.
- When little cooked (after 10 minutes), add the potatoes and salt.
- Cook until the potatoes are done; mash them along with dal.
- Add the chopped (or grated) cauliflower, carrots, and green peas to the dal mix.
- Cook for another 15 minutes until the carrots are tender.
- Add water, as needed.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil on medium heat in a skillet.
- Sauté the mustard seeds in hot oil.
- Add the whole red chilies (can be removed before serving).
- Add the onions; stir until translucent.
- Add the cooked mixture.
- Cook for about 5 minutes; it should be like a wet mixture.
- Stir in red chili powder and pao bhaji masala, to taste.
- Separate the rolls.
- Toast them in a hot skillet, using little bit of oil for each roll.
- Put the prepared filling and a slice of tomato between two halves.
- Serve hot.
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Reviews
-
This is fabulous. I got the pao bhaji mix online because there isnt an indian store anywhere near where I am currently staying. The recipe is fabulous. I love all of the flavors and vegetables..and I definitely love anything with bread/rolls! hehe :-) Thanks for the recipe!! -
I halved this recipe and made it for dinner tonight. I am SO GLAD that I finally made this!! I was starving and I was so tired with my exam papers that I needed to take a break, and what better way than try a recipe from you:) I thought about this one and a pao-bhaji craving took on...in the next few minutes, I was busy making this. One thing that's a must for this recipe is to grate the cauliflower and chop the carrots into very fine pieces. As I was really starved, I didn't care to really chop the carrots all that small, and the end result wasn't very good, so I promised myself to take care of that next time. In step 4, when adding the potatoes to the chana dal, I added a tsp. of salt. In future, I'll add the juice of 1 lemon (in step 6) as well as half a cup of finely chopped fresh corriander leaves. I also found that step 8 is not required. I omitted the addition of oil in step 17(we usually add butter on the pao) because I'm really not all that crazy for it(as you know, I'm trying to pull down). I strongly suggest removing the whole red chilli before serving (step 11) because tonight when we were enjoying this, suddenly mom got this into her mouth and I had to say, "Egg on my face". LOL. What I liked alot about this recipe is that it was very "mildly spicy". At my place, I'm so used to eating very spicy pao-bhaji, this was a well-deserved change;-) Another thing I enjoyed immensely was the coolness of a fresh sliced tomato and the heat of the bhaji! EXCELLENT COMBO! Mom has suggested to keep a few slit green chillies and few sliced onions in a bowl at the side of the serving bowl when this is served, so, if anyone wants, they can enjoy these on the side with the bhaji. To cut short -Mom and me finished everything and this recipe is a sure keeper :)!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
kusum gupta
Poughkeepsie, NY
After a successful professional career of 36 years, I am involved in several activities, for example,:
Teach Indian cooking, organize India festival, member of Interfaith Council.
Have published a cookbook 'Recipes with a Spice - Indian Cuisine for Balanced Nutrition' available from me at a discount price. Visit [http://www.healthyindiancuisine.com/] Also published 'Hindu Spirituality - A Practical Approach based on the Bhagavad Gita'.
