As someone who loves a good meal, cooking one, came to me as a natural passion. I belong to a family where meal times consisted of not just food, but also noisy conversation centered around the events of the day and discussing the menu for the next. (ah yes, we are a greedy lot! )

For the most part of my life so far, my contribution in the kitchen was assisting mom and my duties were limited, to chopping veggies and laying the table. Then along came the great Indian wedding, and I was suddenly the queen of my very own kingdom. My curiosity about this magical world, coupled with an enthusiastic sous-chef (my husband, Vineet), led me to take on the challenge of preparing meals on a daily basis, and not succumbing to the convenience of hiring a cook.

This blog is a product of my experiments with food (not all are life threatening :D) for my fellow culinary enthusiasts - especially the newly weds and hungry bachelors and is dedicated to the women who've inspired me in the kitchen;
Aji (s),Ma and Nigella Lawson.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Missal Pav

"Jeetega bhai jeetega, India jeetega!!" has been pretty much the first sentence that the country has been chanting since the euphoric victory in the semi-finals of the cricket world cup. We got together with friends to support team India, and watch them go through to the finals... and an assal-marathi Missal Pav was our meal of choice, that complemented the heat that the Indo-Pak game generated!!
Missal Pav, is a popular snack native to Mumbai and Pune. It consists of a spicy gravy made with sprouts and boiled potatoes garnished with crispy snacks consisting of fried peanuts, rice flakes and puffed rice, with chopped onions, tomato and coriander. This Mixture is called the "missal" and it is traditionally eaten with 'pav' a soft bread bun.

We polished off the meal with some Vanilla Pound cake- that I baked to celebrate our highly anticipated win, drizzled with home-made blueberry sauce! Yum!

A big thank-you to Ujjwala, for all her help with the prep needed for missal-pav, that allowed me to enjoy the match with the rest of the gang! :) Dhyani, sorry it took me so long to post this, but hope it helps you through many a weekend treats! :)

Ingredients for Ussal:
1 cup Mataki (brown moong)
3 medium size Boiled Potatoes (peeled & cut into cubes)
3-4 tbsp oil
1 tbsp Red chilli powder
1 tsp Tamarind pulp
Salt &  Sugar as per taste
For Tempering:
3 tbsp Oil + 1 tbsp Mustard Seeds + 1 Pinch Heeng (asafoetida) + 1 tsp Turmeric powder 
Whole Spices to be powdered:
1tsp Jeera + 2 tsp Coriander seeds + 2-3 Cloves+ 2-3black peppercorns + 1/4" Cinnamon stick.
For Gravy:
1/2 cup Onion - chopped
2 tbsp Ginger-Garlic paste

10-15 Mint leaves 
For Serving:
1/2 cup 'Chiwda' snack mix
1/2 cup chopped Onion
1/2 cup chopped Tomato
Coriander for garnishing- chopped
1/2 a Lime for squirting over the mix

Method:
Soak the Sprouts in a water in a 1:2 ratio the night before. The seeds will absorb the water and soften. Discard any remaining water and transfer the soaked seeds onto a clean kitchen cloth. Make into a bundle and cover with a bowl. Keep in a warm place in the kitchen for the the sprouts to...well, "sprout". Pressure cook the sprouts with roughly 2 times the amount of water.

1.  Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Add the mustard seeds, asafoetida and turmeric.
2.  Add the chopped Onions and ginger-garlic paste. Saute till the oil seperates. Add the red chilli powder, powdered whole spices, sugar and salt. Saute for a few minutes.
3.  Add the cooked sprouts and potatoes and about 2 cups of water.
4. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for another couple of minutes.

TO SERVE:
Fill a bowl with the Sprouts gravy. Garnish with a layer of the crispy fried snack mix, chopped onions, tomato and coriander leaves. Squirt with some lime juice and enjoy piping hot with soft bread.


3 comments:

  1. Thank you, ...much awaited bliss

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  2. :) you're most welcome Dhyani!!

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  3. Tanya...not to forget..misal originated in kolhapur!..;-)

    ReplyDelete