Tawa Pulao Recipe (Mumbai Street Style)

Ingredients

for cooking rice

• 1 cup basmati rice or long grained rice
• 4 cups of water for cooking the rice
• 2 to 3 drops of oil
• salt as required

other ingredients for tawa pulao

• 1 medium green bell pepper (capsicum) – chopped
• 2 large tomatoes or 150 grams tomatoes – chopped
• 1 medium onion or 50 grams onions- chopped
• ½ inch ginger + 2-3 garlic – made into a paste in a mortar-pestle or 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
• ¼ teaspoon red chili powder or add as required
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoon Pav Bhaji Masala or add as required
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoon butter or oil or half-half of both
• 1 small to medium carrot – chopped
• 1 medium potato – chopped
• ½ cup green peas – fresh or frozen
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice or as required
• a few chopped coriander leaves (cilantro leaves) or parsley leaves
• salt as required

Steps

cooking rice

1. Wash the rice repeatedly until the rinsing water turns clear and transparent, with no starch left in it. Starch remaining in the water will make the rice sticky.
2. Leave the rice covered with enough water to soak for 20-30 minutes. Drain it and transfer it to a pot.
3. Add 4 cups of water to the rice, together with salt and a few drops of oil.
4. Give it a stir, cover the pot and cook until the rice grains are fully cooked.
5. The cooked grains need to remain separate as well as being well cooked.
6. If frothing water starts to push up the lid, take the lid off or leave the pot partly covered while the rice cooks.
7. Avoid overcooking the rice or letting it become mushy, since that will spoil the pulao's texture.
8. Tip the cooked rice into a strainer and leave it until all the water has drained.
9. Use a fork to fluff the grains gently.
10. Wait for all the steam to escape, then put a lid over the rice to keep the top grains from drying out.
11. Leave the rice to cool while you continue with the remaining preparation.

making tawa pulao

1. Use a steamer, pan or pressure cooker to steam the carrot, potato and green peas until each is fully cooked.
2. Peel the carrot and potatoes, chop them and set them aside.
3. Melt the butter in a pan or kadai/wok, then fry the cumin in it until browned.
4. Add the finely chopped onions and sauté them to translucency.
5. Follow with the ginger garlic paste and sauté until its raw aroma has gone.
6. Put in the finely chopped tomatoes and bell pepper (capsicum).
7. Stir, then add the spice powders: turmeric, red chili powder and pav bhaji masala.
8. Stir once more and sauté everything until butter begins to separate at the sides.
9. Mix in the chopped potato, carrot and peas, sprinkle with salt and stir together.
10. Add the cooked basmati rice and gently mix it together with the vegetables.
11. Finish the tava pulao with a coriander-leaf garnish and a sprinkling of lemon juice.
12. Serve the tava pulao hot alongside onion tomato raita, cucumber raita or plain yogurt, with papad and pickle.