Tawa Pulao ~ Rice with Spices, An Indian Street Food

I am back after a short absence. The reason being (for the absence, not me being back) a 10 day vacation to France and Italy. It was such an awesome trip and we had such a great time there that I did not want to come back home But then that is what you have to do right? We saw a lot of places, ate a lot of awesome food, drank a LOT of wine and of course took pictures of everything! I have a couple of posts coming up about that, so stay tuned!

<snapping out of day dreaming > and getting back to today’s recipe.

Will you believe me if I said I did not know about something called Tawa Pulao till like a couple of years ago?!? I seriously did not! And the day I discovered this I just loved it! But then again I did not know that Pav Bhaji masala was what went into this. I very recently discovered that and ventured out to make this. It is super super simple to make and I wish I knew about this much earlier!

Note: Pav Bhaji masala is the spice mix that goes into making the mixed vegetable curry which is eaten with buttered pav/bun/bread (like dinner rolls). It is a very popular Indian street food.

I am craving this so much as I write this post as I made this before we left for the trip and I can still remember the flavors dancing in my mouth. Maybe it’s time I made this again

Tawa Pulao – The Recipe

Adapted from Sanjeev Kapoor’s Tawa Pulao Recipe

• Cooked basmati rice – 2 cups
• Oil – 2 tbsp
• Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
• Crushed garlic – 1 tbsp
• Crushed ginger – 1 tsp
• Red Onion – 1, chopped finely
• Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
• Red Chili powder / Cayenne powder – 1 tsp
• Thai green chillie – 1, slit in half
• Pav Bhaji masala powder – 2 tsp
• Carrots – 2 big, diced into small pieces
• Frozen green peas – 1/2 cup
• Green Bell Pepper – 1, diced
• Tomatoes – 2, chopped
• Some fresh chopped cilantro, more chopped red onions and juice of 1/2 limes – for serving

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the cumin seeds. Wait till they are aromatic and splutter a little. Add the ginger and garlic, give it a swirl and add the onions to it. Let the onions brown a little.

Add the green chillie, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and pav bhaji masala. Saute for a while. Add the tomatoes to this mix. Saute till the tomatoes get cooked. Now add the carrots and bell peppers to it. Sprinkle a little water and close the pan to help cook the carrots. Once they are cooked, add the green peas, salt and the rice and mix well.

Sprinkle a little chopped cilantro on top for garnish and serve with more chopped cilantro, chopped onions and slices/juice from 2 limes.