Tawa Pulao Recipe

Tawa Pulao is a famous Mumbai street food. Its a spicy vegetarian rice dish made on large flat griddle called Tawa. Its the same Tawa that is used by the street vendors and in restaurants to make Pav Bhaji/Masala Pav. At home you can use the regular Tawa on which you make Roti/Chapati or a fry pan.  When am in a mood for Biryani but want it quick I tend to make this Tawa Pulao. Its quicker and satisfies my spicy cravings. Serve it with a side of Onion Raita or any other favorite Raita to cool the spice off. 

Its a great use of leftover rice and veggies and more over you need just one ground spice -Pav Bhaji masala to make this dish. Isn’t that great. Its super easy and quick and turns out delicious every single time.  I spice it a bit more by adding some red chilli powder but that’s totally up to once taste. 

Now to the recipe… 

Ingredients: Serves 4-5
2 tbsp butter or oil
1 tsp zeera (cumin seeds)
1 medium onion cut in juliennes
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
4 tomatoes finely chopped
1/2 red capsicum cut in cubes
1/2 green capsicum cut in cubes
1/4 cup carrots diced and boiled
1/4 cup green beans diced and boiled
1/4 cup green peas boiled
1/4 cup corn kernels boiled
1 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder (or to taste)
2 tbsp Pav Bhaji Masala (or to taste)
4 cups cooked rice
handful of finely chopped coriander leaves
1 tbps of lemon juice (or to taste)
salt and black pepper to taste

Method: 

In a flat griddle/Tawa heat butter and once melted add the cumin seeds. Once they begin to splutter add the onions and saute for a minute or two. Then add the ginger garlic paste and mix well. Cook till onion are translucent. Then add the tomatoes followed by salt and pepper. Mix and cook till the tomatoes are soft and juicy.

To this add the red and green capsicum,red chilli powder and Pav bhaji masala. Give it a good mix and cook for a minute for the masala to cook. Then add the boiled veggies like green peas, corn, carrot and beans. Mix well and cook for a minute allowing these veggies to soak the masala. Then add the cooked rice. Mix well so that everything gets well incorporated. Finally add the lemon juice and coriander leaves and give it a final stir. 

Notes: 

• Veggies of choice can be used. You can even add cauliflower and boiled potatoes in addition to the veggies mentioned.
• You can adjust the pav bhaji masala to your taste. 
• I prefer Kashmiri red chilli powder as it gives good color and is not that spicy. But regular red chilli powder can also be used.
• Addition of turmeric powder is also an option. 
• To boil the veggies, I usually chop them and add them to a microwave safe bowl and add some water to it along with veggies. Microwave for 2-3 minutes or until the veggies are 3/4th cooked. Drain the liquid. You can also boil them in pot over stove top by getting water to a boil and adding the veggies to it and cooking for 2-3 mins and then draining the liquid. 

That’s it, our spicy and delicious Tawa Pulao is ready. Serve it hot with some Onion Raita or any raita of choice. Enjoy!!

Happy Cooking!!
Shweta