My feral instincts come into play the moment I set my sight on a plate of Misal Pav. That feeling, when your fingers are dripping with sticky Tarri ( thin gravy predominantly of Oil ) and wateryeyes looking at the finished plate of Misal with Farsan is unforgiving. I havepractically tasted Misal at most of the joints and roadside eateries and relished them at a fewplaces. I would consider it as more of a one-dish meal rather than a snack since who is happywith a Single Pav or Double Pav for that matter, I happen to be a glutton who refills myMisal bowl with at least 2 to 3 helpings of super spicy Tarri. “Wherever you eat, eat with allyour heart,” says not Confucius but me – Mr.Delicious – that’s the case with Misal. Insurmountable eateries are offering this dish with each specialising on their recipe.But if you ask a Hotelier like me – authentic Misal is the one which has a fiery red colour and anexorbitant amount of Oil along with a very spicy taste and a hot aftertaste. Many food outletshave a doctored version of the original recipe which includes generous amounts of sprouts etcwhich according to me is not what an authentic Misal needs to be like.So let’s try and take a look at the Authentic Misal recipe and have it at home itself, making surethe three important steps in cooking a great and delicious Misal.
1 ) Always make sure that the Masala is roasted well.
2 ) Never add Tomatoes. They fade out the spiciness of Misal and make it runny. Most ofthe ready-mix Misal available at shops and supermarkets shall instruct you to addTomato.
3 ) Besides Vatana ( dried white peas ) and Farsan, no other things need to be added.
Prep Time – 20 minutes
Cook Time – 25 minutes
Total Time – 45 minutes
Serves – 3
My feral instincts come into play the moment I set my sight on a plate of Misal Pav. That feeling, when your fingers are dripping with sticky Tarri ( thin gravy predominantly of Oil ) and watery
eyes looking at the finished plate of Misal with Farsan is unforgiving. I have
practically tasted Misal at most of the joints and roadside eateries and relished them at a few
places. I would consider it as more of a one-dish meal rather than a snack since who is happy
with a Single Pav or Double Pav for that matter, I happen to be a glutton who refills my
Misal bowl with at least 2 to 3 helpings of super spicy Tarri. “Wherever you eat, eat with all
your heart,” says not Confucius but me – Mr.Delicious – that’s the case with Misal. Insurmountable eateries are offering this dish with each specialising on their recipe.
But if you ask a Hotelier like me – authentic Misal is the one which has a fiery red colour and an
exorbitant amount of Oil along with a very spicy taste and a hot aftertaste. Many food outlets
have a doctored version of the original recipe which includes generous amounts of sprouts etc
which according to me is not what an authentic Misal needs to be like.
So let’s try and take a look at the Authentic Misal recipe and have it at home itself, making sure
the three important steps in cooking a great and delicious Misal.
1 ) Always make sure that the Masala is roasted well.
2 ) Never add Tomatoes. They fade out the spiciness of Misal and make it runny. Most of
the ready-mix Misal available at shops and supermarkets shall instruct you to add
Tomato.
3 ) Besides Vatana ( dried white peas ) and Farsan, no other things need to be added.
Prep Time – 20 minutes
Cook Time – 25 minutes
Total Time – 45 minutes
Serves – 3
Ingredients:
Vatana ( dried white peas ) – 100 gm ( boiled Al dente – up to 90 % ) fully boiled Vatana shall
spoil the crunchy taste needed for the final product.
Onions – 60 gms
Green Chillies ( chopped ) – 3 to 4 pieces
Coriander – a sprig
Garlic – 5 flakes
Cloves – 6 pieces
Turmeric powder – a pinch
Red Chilli Powder – 2 tbsp
Goda Masala – a pinch
Salt – to taste
Farsan – 150 gm
Vegetable Oil – 50 ml ( the secret to a great tarri )
Method :
1) Grind the onions, coriander, garlic and cloves to a paste.
2) Heat oil and roast the paste nicely to a deep brown colour, all the way till lumps are
formed and oil oozes out. You should be able to get the aroma of roasted clove powder
and Onion. Believe me, roasting nicely is worth it.
3) Add the chopped green chillies and fry further. Add the dry spices and roast well for
about 5 minutes.
4) Now add Vatana and water, making sure the gravy is thin and boil on high flame for 5
mins. And the Vatana is just about cooked.
5) Remove from flame and serve piping hot top with Farsan and accompanied with
chopped onions lemon wedge and Pao.
N.B – while making Tarri, it’s important to note that Oil floats up and all the water
gets eliminated or rather gets imbibed in the Tarri.
Spicy Tarri or Rassa
