Misal Pav is one of my favourite Maharashtrian snacks. There are quite a few places in Pune where you can find this. Shri Krishna, Wadeshwar, Shripad are my favourite joints. My mum makes a delicious version of it too.
After moving to London, this is one of the dishes I miss the most. I have found one place in London that serves it but it’s not the same.
You will find many different recipes for Misal Pav, I’m sharing my mum’s recipe.
Misal actually means mixture. So, this dish is an assembly of multiple components: Usal, poha, batata bhaaji and others. Don’t get overwhelmed by the number of ingredients. Follow the instructions step-by-step and be prepared to multi-task. All the effort is worth it.
Preparation time: 1 hour
This recipe servers four portions. People usually go for seconds and thirds so make sure you make some extra.
Ingredients:
3 cups of matki sprouts (moth bean sprouts) or mixed bean sprouts
2 cups of poha (rice flakes)
10 baby potatoes
4 medium sized red onions
5 ripe tomatoes
3 big cloves of garlic
8 green chillies
1 inch ginger
Half a bunch of coriander leaves
1 fistful of peanuts
Handful of curry leaves
Mustard seeds
Cumin seeds
Asafoetida (hing)
Turmeric powder
Red chilli powder
Coriander powder
Cumin powder
1 tbsp. goda masala
2 tsp. crushed jaggery (if you can’t find jiggery sugar is fine)
Vegetable oil
Salt to taste
Sugar
250 grams farsan / Bombay mix
1 small cup concentrated Tamarind pulp
250 grams yoghurt
(I have not given the measures for spices as you will need to buy them in small jars and in different components you need different measures, which I have explained in the method)
Method:
- Let’s do a bit of preparation so that it becomes easy to follow:
a. Boil the baby potatoes for about 10-12 minutes. Till they are boiling prepare the other things given below.
b. Finely chop the onion and tomatoes and keep them aside in a separate bowl.
c. Take 5 chillies and roughly chop them in about half an inch long pieces.
d. Crush the garlic, 3 chillies in a pestle and mortar
e. Grate the inch of ginger
f. Finely chop the coriander and keep it aside.
g. Hold the boiled potatoes under cold water and then peel them off.
h. Cut the boiled potatoes in biggish cubes and keep them aside
i. Wash the matki sprouts in a colander and keep it aside in a bowl.
j. Keep all the spice jars in small plate or tray so that it is easy to access. - Now we will make each component of the recipe one at a time, starting with Usal.
a. Heat a tbsp. vegetable oil in a big pot.
b. When the oil is slightly hot add ¼ tsp. of mustard seeds.
c. When they start crackling add
i. ¼ tsp. cumin seeds,
ii. ¼ tsp. asafetida,
iii. ½ tsp. turmeric
iv. ½ tsp. red chilli powder
v. 5-6 curry leaves
d. Add half a cup of the chopped onions and sauté them on medium heat for 2-3 minutes
e. Add the crushed garlic and chilli paste and ½ tsp. of grated ginger and sauté it for 1 minute.
f. Add 1 cup of chopped tomatoes followed by:
i. ¼ tsp. of coriander powder
ii. ¼ tsp. of cumin powder
iii. ½ tsp. of goda masala
g. Sauté it all till the tomatoes start releasing a bit of oil.
h. Add the matki sprouts, 2tsp of crushed jaggery, 1tsp of the tamarind pulp and about 1 ½ tsp. of salt (or as per your taste)
i. Add water to properly cover the entire mixture and let it boil.
j. Once the mixture starts boiling, reduce the heat, cover it and leave it to simmer for about 20 minutes and then turn the heat off. - Now, let’s make the second component – Poha till the usal is cooking.
a. Wash the poha (rice flakes) in a colander and then keep it aside.
b. Heat ½ tbsp. oil in a wok.
c. Once the oil is hot, add:
i. All of the peanuts
ii. ¼ tsp. mustard seeds
iii. ¼ tsp. cumin seeds
iv. ¼ tsp. asafoetida
v. ¼ tsp. turmeric
vi. Half of the chopped chillies
vii. 3-4 curry leaves
d. Everything should start crackling pretty soon.
e. Add half a cup of chopped onion.
f. Add the poha, 1/2 tsp. of salt and 1 tsp. sugar.
g. Mix it all up and keep it on medium heat covered for 4-5 minutes. Then turn the heat off. - Now, let’s make the third component – batata bhaaji
a. Heat ½ tbsp. oil in a wok.
b. Once the oil is hot, add:
i. ¼ tsp. mustard seeds
ii. ¼ tsp. asafoetida
iii. ¼ tsp. turmeric
iv. Half of the chopped chillies
v. 3-4 curry leaves
c. Add ½ cup of chopped onion and sauté it for 2-3 minutes.
d. Add the boiled potatoes, 1tsp. salt and 1 tsp. sugar.
e. Mix it all up and keep it on medium heat for 5 minutes and then turn it off. - Take the remaining of the tamarind pulp in a jug and add half a cup of cold water to it.
- Now, all your components are ready and it’s time to assemble it. You should assemble it just before you are ready to it.
- Take a deep bowl/pasta bowl per person.
a. Add a big ladle full of usal
b. Add 2 tbsp. of poha and 2 tbsp. of batata bhaaji.
c. Add 1 tbsp. of chopped onions and tomatoes
d. Add 2-3 tbsp. of tamarind water
e. Add handful of farsan
f. Add 1tbsp of yoghurt
g. Sprinkle coriander leaves on top - Keep a few slices of bread or bread buns to have to dip in the Misal.
Your Misal Pav is now ready to eat. Enjoy!