Skip to content
FriendsPantry

Indian

Pav bhaji masala

Vegetarian

पावभाजी मसाला · pāvbhājī masālā

The bright-red, tangy Mumbai street blend for pav bhaji: roasted Kashmiri chillies, coriander, cumin, fennel and whole warm spices ground with amchur, black salt and turmeric.

Pav bhaji masala is an Indian condiment, ready in about 23 minutes and made with dried whole chillies, coriander seeds and amchur (dried mango powder). It serves 27 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking

No licensed photograph of this dish yet.

Prep
5 min
Cook
8 min
Rest
10 min
Total
23 min
Serves
27
Level
Easy
Calories
—

Ingredients

27 teaspoons (about 3 g each)

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Roast the chillies in a dry pan over medium-low heat for 1–2 minutes until crisp and slightly darker; tip out.

  2. Step 2

    Roast the coriander for 3 minutes, adding the cumin, fennel and peppercorns (opens in a new tab) for the last 1½ minutes. Tip out, then roast the cinnamon, black cardamom (opens in a new tab), cloves (opens in a new tab), star anise (opens in a new tab) and bay leaf (opens in a new tab) for 1 minute.

    • 4 min
    • medium-low heat

  3. Step 3

    Tip everything onto a wide plate in a single layer and cool completely, about 10 minutes. Warm spices release oil and steam in the grinder and turn pasty and clumpy.

    • 10 min

  4. Step 4

    Grind to a fine powder, then pulse in the amchur (opens in a new tab), black salt (opens in a new tab) and turmeric (opens in a new tab). Sift for a smooth bhaji.

    Food safety: Roast in a dry pan, never one with water droplets; and grind in short bursts — chilli dust from the grinder lid stings eyes and throat, so let it settle before opening.

  5. Step 5

    Spoon into a clean, completely dry glass jar or spice tin, label with the date and keep away from the stove, light and steam. Always use a dry spoon.

About this dish

Origin
Mumbai, Maharashtra, Maharashtra, India · Commonly attributedPav bhaji grew up around Mumbai's textile mills in the 1850s–60s; the dedicated masala is a later street-stall staple. This is a typical home formulation.More food from India
Dish
Snack · Dinner · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
Cooking method
Toasted
Taste
spicy (chilli heat), tangy, aromatic / warmly spiced
Diet
Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Whole-food focused · Paleo-style · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead · Street food
Cook more with
Dried whole chillies · Coriander seeds · Amchur (dried mango powder) · Cumin seeds · Fennel seeds · Black peppercorns
Techniques
Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Dry grinding

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

Nutrition not available for this recipe

Not enough data to calculate: Amchur (dried mango powder). We show nothing rather than a made-up number.

Good to know

Tips

  • Use 1–1½ tbsp for a bhaji for four, fried in plenty of butter with the tomatoes before the mashed vegetables go in.

Common mistakes

  • Adding it at the end — it needs a minute or two in hot butter to lose its raw edge.

Serve with

  • Pav bhaji, masala pav and tawa pulao.

Food safety

  • Roast in a dry pan, never one with water droplets; and grind in short bursts — chilli dust from the grinder lid stings eyes and throat, so let it settle before opening.

Storage

  • Airtight, cool and dark, for 3 months.

Variations

  • Jain pav bhaji masala: The same blend used for bhaji made without onion, garlic or potato (raw banana instead).

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

About this masala

Type
Dry spice blend
Texture
Fine powder
One batch makes
about 80 g
Keeps
about 3 months
Store
Airtight jar, cool dark cupboard
Recipe
Traditional

Mumbai, Maharashtra. Makes Pav bhaji masala, the ingredient our dish recipes list. All masalas

Used in

Amounts are each dish’s own quantity, for the servings it is written for. “Make enough” opens this recipe scaled for that dish.

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

The spice and seasoning backbone

Spices, masalas & pastes

Used in steps 1, 2, 4

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

You might also like