Misal Pav

Misal pav is a popular mumbai street food. It is my family’s favourite dish. Misal” is a Marathi word which means “mixture”.Misal is a spicy curry made with mixed sprouts or moth beans and pav (laadi pav). Misal is garnished with mix farsan (mix chiwda) on the top and also some topped with onion & Lemon. Misal has two types – the thick spicy sprouted mixture, called Usal and the watery gravy, called Rassa. The gravy is either Laal Rassa (Red Gravy), Kala Rassa (Black Gravy) or Hirwa Rassa (Green Gravy). Tari is a spicy red oil that makes the dish look devouringly mouth-watering. All Misal’s are relished with pav, buttered or plain. When all these things come together, you have a wholesome, somewhat healthy dish called the Misal Pav. Every household has its own recipe; that you can easily make at home. This spicy and lip-smacking dish can be served for breakfast, and brunch and is healthy as well.

Ingredients

For Sprouting Moth Beans:

Sprouted moth beans/ matki-1 bowl

Water-2 cups

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Red chilli Powder- ½ tsp

Salt -1 tsp

For making Misal masala paste:

Dry Roast:

Dry coconut grated-¼ cup

Coriander seeds- 1tbsp

Pepper- 1 tsp

Jeera- 1 tsp

Cinnoman-1 stick

Cloves-3

For Frying:

Oil-1 tbsp

Cumin seeds

Mustard seeds

Redchillies-5

Ginger roughly chopped-2-inch

Garlic roughly chopped-4 Cloves

large Onions-1 sliced

large Tomato -1chopped

For making misal curry:

Oil-1 tbsp

Cumin seeds-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1 tsp

Coriander powder-1 tsp

Red chili powder-1 tsp

Garam masala powder-1 tsp

Roasted cumin powder-1 tsp

Salt per taste

For serving misal pav:

Fresh coriander leaves finely chopped-1/2 cup

 Lemon wedges-5to6

Bowl full of farsan

Method:

1.Rinse the mixed sprouts in a vessel with water.

2.Then wash them under running water and drain the water.

3.Put the mixed sprouts in the cooker along diced potato cubes, tomatoes, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt and a pinch of hing.

4.Pressure Cook the mixed sprouts up to 2 whistles with 3 cups water on low medium flame

For making misal masala paste:

1.Heat the wide bottom broad pan and dry roast the grated dry coconut on low flame, till it turns aromatic and golden brown in colour.

2.In the same pan, fry Pepper, clove, cinnamon, red chilly jeera and sauté till it splutters.   

3.In a Pan add oil heat and add the onions and sauté for 4 -5 mins till it becomes tender and then add tomatoes and cook until it turns soft and mushy.

4.Turn off the flame and wait for the mixture to cool down

5.Once cooled, transfer it to the same mixer jar in and blend  along with fried masala and onion it to form a smooth paste and keep aside.

 

For making misal gravy:

1.In a broad pan, heat 2 tbsp oil and add jeera and let it splutter.

2.Add the masala paste into the pan and sauté for 7 to 8 mins on medium-low flame until the paste releases oil and starts leaving the sides of the pan.

3.Now add red chilli powder, coriander powder, jeera powder, and garam masala and sauté on low flame till it turns aromatic.

4.Add in the pressure-cooked moth beans along with its water and salt as per taste and stir it occasionally on high flame for about 10 -12 minutes.

5.Once the misal gravy is cooked, oil starts floating on top and a red layer appearing on top is called tarri/kat which adds spicy flavour to misal.

6.Turn off the flame and garnish with fresh coriander leaves

For serving misal pav:

1.Take a deep bowl and add moth beans to form the base layer.

2.Now add finely chopped onions and 1 tbsp coriander leaves.

3.Top it with a handful of farsan and squeeze 1 tbsp lemon juice.

4.Finally, pour ladleful of Ras all over farsan and 1 tbsp coriander leaves.

5.Serve hot misal with fresh and spongy pav and lemon wedges.Enjoy!

Tilgul poli (Seasame poli)

Tilgul poli (Seasame poli)

This is my very first experience of making Gul Poli (Maharashtian cusine)Jaggery flatbread.I learn this recipe from my Maharashtrian friend. A version stuffed with jaggery  and ground sesame seeds (til) is especially made at one of the which is celebrated either on the 14th or 15th of January. Traditionally, Maharashtrian people wish each other Tilgul ghya goad bola ("Enjoy gulachi poli and speak sweetly") to encourage good relationships. The actual process of stuffing, rolling and cooking did not take very long, but the preparations took quite some time. The poli was pretty good and not too sweet. My Family absolutely love this dish.

 

Ingredients

For dough

Wheat flour-1 cup

All purpose flour-1/2 cup

Oil-1 tbsp

Milk-3/4 cup

Besan-2 tbsp

For stuffing

Jaggery (grated)- 3/4 cup

Sesame seeds-1/4 Cup((lightly roasted till it is crisp & golden in colour)

Grated Coconut--1/4 Cup(roasted)

Chickpea Flour/Besan-1/4 Cup

Cardamom powder-1/2 tsp

nutmeg Powder-1/2 tsp(optional)

Poppy Seeds/Khuskhus-1/4 cup(Dry-roasted powdered)

Ghee/Clarified Butter (as needed)

 

Method:-

1.Mix all the flours. Make a well in the middle, heat oil and add it to the flour.The oil should be sizzling hot .Then mix it nicely and remove all lumps. 
2.Now start kneading the soft dough by adding little milk at a time. Consistency of dough should be soft like a regular chapati dough. Apply few drops of oil on dough and cover it. Let it rest for 30-40 minutes.

3.Now for filing, grate the jaggery.Heat Ghee in a pan add chickpea flour and roast it. Add Ghee as required little at a time. Keep stirring continuously. 
4.Roast on low heat till it changes its colour and its aroma spreads all over the room. It will take about 6-7 minutes. Then switch off heat and keep it aside. Let it cool

5.Roast sesame seeds, poppy seeds and coconut one by one. Grind  it powder one by one and mix.

6.Add ground sesame seeds and coconut, cardamom powder, nutmeg powder along with roasted besan and jaggery grind this mixture in a mixie till they are well combined.
7.Mix all ingredients well and make equal sized balls.

 

8..Make equal portions of dough. Sprinkle some all purpose flour on rolling board. 
9.Roll the dough to the size of puri.Place a ball of tilgul filling in the center close it by covering the edges at top so that the fiiling will not come out.
10Use more flour and roll it till it become normal roti size or 7-8 inches in diameter.

11.Heat the griddle (tawa) put some ghee roast it from both the side using ghee on medium flame till it turns golden brown. Serve   crispy Gulpoli with ghee .

Masale Bhath

Masale Bhath is an imperative Rice dish cooked with seasonal vegetables and spices for every festive/wedding meal in Maharashtra which is very spicy and flavourful.. It is simple in terms of preparation, and it is an absolutely tasty dish yet so easy to make.

For Rice

Basmati Rice - 2 cups

Ghee - 3 tbsp

Onions - 2 large ones

Water - 3 cups

Salt to taste

Vegetables :

Tindora, Green peas, Cabbage, Pumpkin , Potato, Cauliflower, Carrot as per your choice

For Dry Masala (Roast all without oil and grind them to a fine powder.)

Coriander seeds- 2-1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds-1tsp

Sesame seeds-1tsp

badi elaichi-1

Cardamom - 3 pods

Cinnamon - 1 inch

Cloves - 3

Black Peppercorns – few

Turmeric powder- ½ tsp

Salt to taste

Redchilli powder-1tsp

Asafetida- pinch

Green chilli-2

For Garnishing

Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

Chopped coriander leaves 2 tbsp

Grated fresh coconut - 2 tbsp

Method to prepare:

1.   Soak rice in water for thirty minutes. Drain and set aside

2.   Heat  ghee in a pan and season with mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When they crackle, add curry leaves, asafoetida and green chili, and onion, saute until onion changes color.

3.  Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, and the roasted masala powder, mix well for a minute.

4.  Add the vegetables, salt , sprinkle some water and cook for 5 minutes. Then Add rice and mix well.

5.   Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and continue to cook covered until rice is done and all the water is absorbed.

6.   Remove from heat and serve hot, garnished with roasted cashewnuts, chopped coriander leaves and scraped coconut.

7.  Serve hot with a raita.