When was the last time you ate something at a Mumbai street vendor’s stall and wondered about the dish’s backstory? I’m sure you wouldn’t have considered it. In a city where everything from a Rs 10 nimbupaani to a Rs 25000 three-course meal is available. Few people seem interested in learning about the history of the food they eat on a daily basis. So today we will know the history of Pav Bhaji.
In a city of 233 square miles, Mumbai’s street food may have the most diverse selection of delicacies. It’s a culinary universe crammed into a small group of islands. The city’s street food, like its cosmopolitan reputation, has a variety of identities and avatars. The Pav Bhaji is perhaps Mumbai’s most popular street food dish. A spicy, soupy, crunchy mixture of vegetables, pan-fried or Tawa-fried in a unique blend of spices, served with two or three portions of the city’s famous laadipavs soaked in butter and chaat masala, this is a delight for any avid foodie.
In this mozzarella cheese, grated paneer, mushroom topping are also added, due to which the taste of pav bhaji becomes even more delicious, almost you find pav bhaji stalls at every corner of the city. This dish has made international recognition. In some places, it has even evolved into Pav Bhaji pizzas. You name it, and the Pav Bhaji has a version to suit your taste buds! Not willing to go outside? You can buy pav bhaji masala online.
However, only a few people are aware of the humble beginnings of this now-famous fast food item. Many people think that Pav Bhaji was first made in Gujarat, but it is not so. It was first made in Mumbai. In the 19 century, women living in the chawl of Mumbai, this dish was born in view of their need. Rather than being an invention, the Pav Bhaji was born as a temporary fix. When Mumbai’s cloth mills grew in popularity in the late 1800s, they employed a large number of workers who worked long days.
These labourers often went hungry because they had so little time to eat because they were working so hard to meet the growing demand for Indian cotton in European markets. Workers would leave early and return late from their shifts, leaving their wives with little time to prepare a decent meal for their husbands. The Pav Bhaji today’s street food. Arose from the need to ensure that the man of the house keeps the machines running without going hungry.
The housewife realised that in order to provide the nutrition on a tight budget, she needed a quick fix. Carrots, potatoes, cabbage, green peas, onions, or whatever else was available in their chawls would be cooked in a strange mix of different powdered spices (which is a staple in Maharashtrian households) and packed for lunch with bhakri a nutritious flat bread made from millet dough that is similar to roti but has a coarser texture. Surprisingly, the pav did not appear until much later. While preparing a meal in no time, the homemaker could be at ease about the health of the family’s breadwinner.
The modern version of Pav Bhaji, on the other hand, came to prominence in the late 1970s. When the dish quickly gained popularity among Mumbai’s Gujarati community. With added ingredients such as butter, cheese, and various chutneys catching up with time. However, the modern dish’s foundation a mash of potatoes, tomatoes, onions, green peas, and, occasionally, cauliflower or broccoli has remained unchanged since its inception. Many families who still set up roadside stalls serving the dish have been able to provide a good education and a good life for their children thanks to this simple food wonder.
So, the next time you treat your taste buds whether it’s at Tardeo’sSardar Pav Bhaji, CST’s Canon Pav Bhaji, or any other famous localised brand remember to give a nod to those humble women of 19th century Mumbai chawls who laid the groundwork for this modern-day culinary marvel!
