Kolhapuri Misal Pav is a famous Maharastrian street food consisting of sprouted moth beans curry served together in a spicy, thin gravy, garnished with chopped red onions, farsaan, lemon wedges, chopped coriander leaves and served with pillowy soft buttered and slightly roasted pavs.
Misal Pav is not something that I have eaten while growing up. This fiery hot lipsmacking dish, which is a great alternative to Pav Bhaji, was introduced to me by a good friend and neighbor, Mehul, who is a great versatile cook. While he has given his recipe, I have tweaked it a little bit based on all the readings and research I have done on this dish.
On a cold rainy day or a chilly snowy day, when you are in a mood for hot & spicy dish bursting with flavors at the same time nutritious too, this Kolhapuri Misal Pav is a perfect one to devor.
WHAT IS MISAL PAV?
Misal is a spicy and hot sprouted bean curry and Pav is a soft white bun. Hot bowl of Misal is garnished with chopped red onions, coriander leaves, lemon wedges, a generous amount of deep-fried mixture of snacks prepared from gram flour, flattened rice, peanuts, etc., called farsaan and served with buttered and pan roasted pavs.
Usually, Misal consists of Usal and Kat or rassa. Usal is a dry curry prepared using the sprouted moth beans, onions and some spices. Kat, also known as rassa is a thin spicy gravy prepared using roasted coconut, onions, tomato, ginger, garlic and a warm blend of other spices.
There are many variants of Misal Pav like Puneri Misal, Nashik Misal, Nagpuri Misal, Kolhapuri Misal. This is recipe of Kolhapuri Misal which is known to be spicier of all the variants.
HOW IS USAL PREPARED?
Traditionally, moth beans, known as Matki are used to prepared Usal. Small quantities of other beans may be used along with moth beans.
In this recipe, I have used moth beans and small quantities of black chickpeas, dried green peas, dried kidney beans and peanuts.
The process to sprout should be started at least 3 days before the day of preparation of this dish.
To sprout the beans, soak them overnight, drain all the water and let them sprout either using a moist cloth, sprouting container or even Instant Pot.
These sprouted beans are then cooked with sauteed onions, ginger, garlic and other spices. This curry is dry and called as Matkichi Usal in Maharastra.
HOW IS KAT OR RASSA PREPARED?
The fiery hot and spicy flavor of this dish comes from the blend of spices that goes into making this dish. The spices are roasted and blend into fine powder to make Kolhapuri Masala. This masala is cooked with sauteed onions, tomato, tamarind, a small piece jaggery and lots of water to get a soupy gravy called Kat or Rassa.
A perfectly made Kat, with the right amount of spices and sauteing, will have a red oily layer floating on top of the gravy called Tarri.
WHAT IS MISAL?
Few tablespoons of prepared Usal is taken In a bowl, Kat is then generously poured on top of it and garnished with chopped onions, coriander leaves, lemon wedges and farsaan to make Misal. This soupy, fiery hot bowl full of goodness bursting with flavors is served with buttered and pan roasted pillowy soft pavs.
To make the process less laborious, some people may opt to make usal, add freshly made kolhapuri masala and cook it in a single pot instead of making Kat separately. This is a personal choice. I prefer to make Usal and Kat separately, the traditional way.
HOW IS MISAL PAV SERVED?
Kolhapuri Misal Pav must always be served hot and spicy. Usually, pav buns are halved, buttered and roasted on a griddle until they are golden brown in color. However, some people use the regular white breads too.
You can serve Usal and Kat in separate bowls along with farsaan, chopped onion, coriander leaves etc., or serve them together as Misal in one bowl.
Rule of thumb is to serve it hot and eat it immediately after serving. If not, the farsaan topped on Misal could get soggy and ruin the consistency.
Notes:
- The first and the most important step is to sprout the beans. You should start this process 3 days ahead. Soak the beans for 7-8 hours, discard the water and let the beans sprout, it could take 1-2 days for the beans to sprout well, in a traditional way. You could follow any sprouting method that you are comfortable with. Sprouting is important.
- Using Moth beans, known as matki is a must. Though this can be substituted with green moong beans, for authentic taste use moth beans. While some people use only moth beans, I use other beans like black chickpeas, kidney beans and dried green peas.
- You could also use one boiled potato to Usal. I do not use.
- I prefer cooking Usal and Kat separately. You could prepare them together instead. Saute the freshly ground masala, add cooked beans and all other ingredients mentioned to make it a one-pot dish.
- Generally, I use less oil in cooking. This dish is one, which needs generous amount of oil. To get the authentic taste, the Kat must be sauteed and boiled well so that the red-colored oil layer called tarri floats on top to make it perfect for the tongue and eyes.
- You could use any type of farsaan, which has mixture of deep-fried gram flour snacks, flattened rice, chivda, peanuts, cornflakes, boondi etc.,
- Using kokum is optional, if it is unavailable, you can skip it totally.
- To reduce the spice and heat, you could also top Misal with little yogurt.
You may also like my other recipes using Pav Buns:
Ingredients
FOR USAL:
Moth Beans (matki) – 1 cup
Dried Green Peas – ¼ cup
Dried Black Chickpeas – ¼ cup
Dried Kidney Beans – ¼ cup
Peanuts – ¼ cup
Cooking Oil – 1 tablespoon
Mustard Seeds – 1 teaspoon
Cumin Seeds – ½ teaspoon
Asafoetida Powder – 1/8 teaspoon
Curry Leaves – 6
Green Chilli, minced – 1 teaspoon
Onion – 1, finely chopped
Ginger, minced – 1 teaspoon
Garlic, minced – 1 teaspoon
Turmeric Powder – ½ teaspoon
Red Chili Powder – 1 teaspoon
Goda Masala – 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste
FOR KAT or RASSA:
Coriander Seeds – 2 tablespoons
Cumin Seeds – ½ tablespoon
Fennel Seeds – ½ teaspoon
Sesame Seeds – 1 tablespoon
Cinnamon – 2 inches long piece
Clove – 6
Black Peppercorns – 10              Â
Stone flower (dagad phool) – 2
Desiccated Coconut – ½ cup
Dry Kashmiri Red Chili - 8
Peanuts – 2 tablespoons
Cooking Oil – 4 tablespoons
Onion – 1 large
Ginger – 1 inch long piece
Garlic Cloves – 5
Tomato – 1
Asafoetida Powder – 1/8 teaspoon
Kashmiri Red Chili Powder – 2 teaspoons
Salt – 1 teaspoon + more for taste
Turmeric Powder – ½ teaspoon
Dried Kokum – 4
Tamarind Pulp – 1 tablespoon
Jaggery Powder – 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste
Goda Masala – 1 teaspoon
Garam Masala – 1 teaspoon
OTHER:
Soft White Pav Buns – 16
Farsaan – 3 cups
Red Onions, chopped – 2 cups
Coriander Leaves, chopped – 1 cup
Lemon Wedges – 8 to 10
Fresh Yogurt – 1 cup (optional)
Instructions
SPROUTING BEANS:
- Start 3 days before you want to serve Misal Pav.
- First wash and soak all the beans together for about 7-8 hours.
- Discard all the water and tie the beans in a clean muslin cloth. Hang the cloth in a well-ventilated area. If you do not have a suitable cloth, use a sprouting container or Instant Pot. It could take 1-2 days for the beans to sprout well.
PREPARING USAL:
- Heat oil in pan.
- Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and asafoetida powder. Mix well.
- Add roughly chopped curry leaves, minced green chilli. Saute for a minute.
- Throw in chopped onions, minced ginger and garlic. Saute until onion turns translucent.
- Now add turmeric powder, red chili powder, goda masala powder and salt.
- Mix in the sprouted beans, add a cup of water and cook the beans until they are soft but still hold shape. Add 1 more cup of water if needed. Do not over cook the beans, they should not turn mushy. Turn off the heat.
PREPARING KAT or RASSA:
- In a pan, dry roast coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, sesame seeds, cinnamon, cloves, black peppercorns and stone flower on low flame until they turn slightly brown and aromatic. Do not burn them.
- Add desiccated coconut and continue roasting until it turns golden brown. Transfer the roasted spices and coconut into a blender.
- Heat 1 teaspoon oil in the same pan.
- Roast Kashmiri red chili on low flame until they turn crispy. Transfer them to the blender.
- Heat another teaspoon oil in the same pan.
- Add chopped onions, ginger and garlic until onions are well browned. Transfer them to the blender.
- Chop the tomato and add it to the blender.
- Pour little water and blend it into a smooth paste.
- Heat all the remaining oil in a large sauce pan or a stock pot.
- Add asafoetida powder, kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric powder and 2 teaspoons of salt. Saute for half a minute.
- Add the blended paste, kokum, tamarind pulp, jaggery powder, goda masala powder and garam masala powder. Mix well and cook it on medium flame until oil separates.
- Pour 4-5 cups of water, add more salt if needed and let is simmer until the red colored oil layer, called tarri floats on top. Turn off the heat.
SERVING MISAL PAV:
- Heat a griddle.
- Halve the pav buns, roast them with generous amount of butter until they are golden brown.
- Take a few tablespoons of prepared Usal in a bowl.
- Fill the bowl with prepared Kat.
- Top it with farsaan, chopped onions, coriander leaves and lemon wedges. You may add a spoon of fresh yogurt if you prefer. Piping hot bowl of fiery hot and flavorful Misal is ready.
- Serve Misal with roasted pavs. Close your eyes and enjoy the flavors bursting in your mouth!
