Potato-Carrot Pav/Pau Cutlets

Spring Rains and nostalgia for spicy hot monsoon snacks brought about this happy melange of dishes!

Yesterday: Pav/Pau Bread with Vegetable cutlets that worked well for a lunch pack, with leftovers for dinner paired with Carrot Corn Soup  with flavours of garlic and basil paired with a failed french bread that proved to be delicious dunked in the soup!

The past few weeks has been a track of 'catch-up' on sundry works around the house and yard, plus a couple of new projects,  a failed  baking attempt at French bread, which left little time to blog on the daily dishes: Rice, Dal, Spinach, Moru Curry, Chutney's  and Chapathi's!

Ingredients

8 small red skinned potatoes

1 medium carrot, grated

1/2 of a medium white onion, finely chopped

3 tbps finely chopped fresh coriander

1/2 tsp grated ginger

2-3 crushed garlic cloves
1/2 tsp cummin seeds
1/4 tsp saunf/aniseed

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp Pav Bhajji Masala Powder [MDH brand used here]

One can substitute any garam masala here.

1/2 tsp red chilli powder [ optional]

1/2 tsp Paprika Powder

salt
2-3 tbps of vegetable oil plus,
Enough oil to shallow fry the cutlets

Cutlet batter

Home-made breadcrumbs

2 tbsps Corn flour

3 tbps water

Method

Boil and mash the potatoes, keep aside.

Heat 3 tbsps of oil in a pan and temper the cummin seeds and saunf,

Add the onions, ginger and garlic, saute until soft

Add the carrots and saute for 3-4 minutes

Add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, paprika powder and mix well
Add the Pav bhajji Masala and saute for a couple of minutes

Add the mashed potato and mix well

Add salt and finely chopped coriander into the mix.

Make a smooth mix with corn flour and water  in a bowl and keep aside.

Scoop out portions for cutlets [ used a bowl ladle]

Dip in the cornflour mix

Coat evenly with bread crumbs

Shallow fry with oil in an tava/ iron griddle.

Serve with mint chutney  and garlic-chilli powder on the Pau/Pav Bread. Used my old recipe for the Pav bread; the texture comes out great.  However still could not get that golden color on the pav.

Whole Wheat Pau/ Pav Bread

Whole Wheat Pau/ Pav rolls

As you would have noticed in this blog, one recipe gets invented in several ways at a time...
:-)

Whole Wheat pan-toasted Pau/Pav rolls with Mixed Vegetable Bhajji, garnished with onions, fennel, green chillies and lemon wedges.

Ingredients for Whole Wheat Pau/Pav Rolls

1 Cup plus 1/3 cup all purpose unbleached flour/maida

1 Cup plus 1/3 Cup Whole wheat flour/ Atta= Indian Chappathi flour used here

1/3 cup Soy flour

1 tbsp Flax seeds [ optional]

2 tsps sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsps Yeast

1/2 Cup warm water  for proofing plus,

1 1/4 Cup water for the dough.

4 tbsps vegetable oil

2 tbsps of milk

Method

Used the Kitchen Aid Mixer for kneading  in this recipe

Dissolve 2 tsps of sugar in 1/2 Cup of warm water,

Proof the yeast in this water, [about 5 minutes]

Sift the flour into the mixer bowl,

Make a well and add  the yeast mix plus 1 1/4 Cup of warm water

On No. 2 setting, low speed knead the flour mix for 3 minutes

At  this stage when it is coming together into a ball, add 4 tbsps of oil.

 Continue for 2 minutes on Speed No.3/between 2 & 4

Cover  with clingwrap in an oiled bowl/same bowl and keep aside in a warm spot until double the size = about 2 hours.

Punch down the dough and portion into 10.

Shape into balls and keep in neat rows, nestled against each other.

Brush with 2 tbps of milk

Bake in 375 oven for 22- 25 minutes.
Leave in the oven for 5 minutes, cool for another 10 minutes and serve.

Notes:

*The Wheat Rolls obviously had a denser texture but still had that fluffy texture. Not very golden on the top but satisfying nonethless, more so for being the healthier alternative!

*Found that  had to bake the White Rolls for more than 22 minutes  and the colour of the Pau/ Pav was lighter than in Vaidehi's  snapshots. The texture came our really well though.

Snow White and the Colourful Curry: Pav Bhajji/ Pau Bhajji

Pav Bhajji

Freshly baked warm rolls with a tangy mixed vegetable curry garnished with a pat of butter, finely chopped onions, fresh fennel fronds and a dash of lime!

Serves 5: with 2 rolls each with at least 2 servings of the curry

The lunch preparation delayed by watching snow flurries with a tapestry of a disney movie and Jonas brothers, cleaning, phone calls more window watching  was worth the wait! Snow and watching people pile up Superbowl foods at the grocery stores inspired this dish!

Perfect vegetarian comfort food and wonderful snack, almost a version of Chilli, though one would classify a 'beans and soya nuggets'  version closer to a Vegetarian Chilli. Must do that  too!:-)

Scouted the internet looking for good recipes and tweaked  a couple of them. The Ladi Pav recipe came from Vaidehi of Chakali.

For the Pau/Pav Rolls

Ingredients

3 cups of Unbleached Flour

1 1/2 tsp dry yeast

2 tsp sugar

1tsp salt

2 tbsp milk

1 1/2 Cups of luke warm water

Method

Proof the yeast: Mix 2 tsp of sugar in 1/2 cup of lukewarm water, add the yeast and keep aside for 5 minutes until the yeast froths up.

Sift 3 cups of flour into a bowl and add the yeast and 3/4 Cup of water to make a smooth dough.

Used the kneading attachment  and kneaded  on medium slow for about 5 minutes, scraping down the dough,  before incorporating 4 tbsps of oil into the dough.

Shape into a ball, cover and keep aside in a warm spot to rise until double in size, about 2 hours.

Punch down the dough, shape into a log  and divide into 10 portions. Shape into 10 rolls, tucking the  dough underneath each roll for a smooth finish.

Oil  the baking dish or tray and dust with flour,

shake off the excess flour and place the dough rolls in neat rows. Cover with clingwrap and keep aside for 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 375, brush the rolls with 2 tbsps of milk and bake for 22 minutes or longer until the tops start turning color.

Cool for 10 minutes and serve.

We dug right in with the fresh rolls; however this street snack favourite is  also served, split in the middle and pan-toasted, sometimes 2  or 3 rolls in a row,  with that salty Indian favourite, Amul Butter.

The MDH Masala powder packet carries a recipe without ginger garlic paste, onions and calls for only potatoes and carrots... one can use a variety of vegetables for this dish: cauliflower, green beans, cabbage, corn kernels are other commonly used vegetables

Colourful Curry/Bhajji

Ingredients

1 1/2 tbsps of MDH brand or any other brand of Pav Bhajji masala

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp  of chilli powder or more according to taste [optional]

1 tbsp of Paprika Powder for colour

2 Cups finely diced carrots

2 Cups of diced red skin potatoes

1 Cup green peas

5 small Campari Tomatoes, finely chopped,

4 mini red bell peppers and

1 mini bell pepper for garnish

1 tsp ginger garlic paste

1 Green chilli finely chopped

2 tbsps vegetable oil

1 tbsp butter

2 tbsps fresh fennel fronds or finely chopped corainder leaves

Garnish/ Accompaniments

Finely chopped red of white onions,

Deseeded, finely chopped green chillies

Meyer Lemon wedges/Lime wedges for individual servings.

Method

Boil the vegetables with salt, turmeric and just enough water,

Mash  coarsely and keep aside.

Heat 2 tbps of oil and saute the finely minced 1 mini bell pepper and green chillies,

Add the tomatoes and fry well for 5 minutes,

Add 1 tbsp of butter and  saute for a couple of minutes,

Add the coarsely mashed curry and 1/2 cup of water and bring to a boil.

Turn the heat  to medium low and simmer for 5 minutes,

Garnish with finely chopped onions, green chillies, fennel fronds and a dash of lemon juice and fresh rolls.