Paneer pav bhaji

Malzemeler

4 soft bread rolls or pav, split in half horizontally

2 teaspoons salted butter, plus extra to serve

finely chopped red onion and fresh coriander leaves, to serve

FOR THE BHAJI

2 tablespoons sunflower oil

2 onions, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, grated

2.5cm (1 inch) piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated

1 red pepper, cored, deseeded and finely chopped

1 green pepper, cored, deseeded and finely chopped

3 tomatoes, finely chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) pieces

200ml (7fl oz) boiling water

225g (8oz) paneer, grated juice of ½ lemon

2 tablespoons salted butter

FOR THE SPICE MIX

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon amchur (mango powder)

1 teaspoon chilli powder

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

Yöntemler

To make the bhaji, heat the oil in a pan, add the onions with the garlic and ginger and cook over a high heat for 4 minutes until they start to soften. Add the peppers and cook for 4 minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook for another 4 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the potato pieces into a pan, cover with water and bring to the boil, then cook for 5 minutes until cooked through.

Drain the potatoes, add to the bhaji mixture with the salt and all the spices and pour in the measured boiling water. Mix well, then cover and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes.

Add the paneer and use a potato masher to mash the mixture until it is mushy and well combined. Cover again and cook for a final 3 minutes. Then add the lemon juice and butter and mix well.

Meanwhile, heat a griddle pan or heavy-based frying pan, add ½ teaspoon of the butter and toast the halves of one bread roll over a medium heat until golden on both sides. Repeat with the remaining butter and rolls.

Serve the toasted rolls warm with the bhaji, topped with a little finely chopped red onion and coriander and an extra knob of butter.

Notlar

Pav bhaji is a very popular Indian street food and here I have made my own version with paneer and peppers. The list of spices might seem rather long, but you need them all to recreate the taste of the authentic pav bhaji. If you can get hold of some ready-made pav bhaji mix from an Asian supermarket or food supplier, or make some yourself to keep in store, then simply add 2½ tablespoons of that instead.