Fatima's Fabulous Kitchen

I don't eat to live. I live to eat.

Pav Bhaji Pot Pie

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I promised a desi take on a veggie pot pie recipe so here it is. I’m taking the flavors of pav bhaji a popular Indian street food and putting it into a pot pie perfect for all your upcoming Friendsgivings.

Pav Bhaji is made with different vegetables – I’m using what I have on hand – some bell pepper, onion, carrots, peas, serrano, potato cauliflower, tomato  that is all cooked in copious amounts of butter, ginger-garlic paste,  and different spices and then mashed together and eaten with pav or buns.

Since I don’t think anyone would enjoy a mushy filling, I did not mash anything and actually added in some flour and half-and-half to thicken everything up like you would in a traditional pot pie filling.

I’m using puff pastry for the crust but you can certainly use pie crust. Or if you want to incorporate the idea of pav (buns) then you can even use Southern-style biscuits!

I enjoyed this Pav Bhaji Pot Pie even more than my Butter Chicken Pot Pie and the flavorful filling makes a regular veggie pot pie look like sad cafeteria food.  It’s a must-make this Fall season!

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Pav Bhaji Pot Pie

Ingredients

  • 4-5 Tbsp butter
  • 1 large potato (boiled)
  • 1 medium onion
  • 1/2 bell pepper
  • 1 large carrot
  • 1 jalapeno or serrano pepper
  • 1 1/4 cup cauliflower
  • 1/3 cup peas
  • 1 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 1 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 1.5-2 tsp salt (or to taste)
  • 1.5 Tbsp pav bhaji masala (store-bought or homemade) see pav bhaji recipe post for details
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 1/2 cup half and half
  • 2 tsp flour
  • 1 puff pasty sheet or pie crust

Instructions

  1. Prep all the veggies and dice them into small and even pieces. Boil the potato before-hand and cut into cubes. (The reason why you want to boil the potato before hand is because it takes a lot longer to cook and by the time it's fully cooked through everything else will get mushy.)

  2. In a large pan, melt some butter on medium-high heat. Sautee the onions, bell pepper, serranos. Once the onions become transcluscent, add in your carrots and cauliflower. Season with salt.

  3. Now add in your ginger-garlic paste and tomato paste. Combine and cook for a few minutes until the tomato paste begins to caramelize.

  4. Add a little bit of water to help the cauliflower and carrots cook down. Keep an eye on it and make sure nothing over-cooks.

  5. Once the water evaporates, toss in the already boiled potato and then the pav bhaji masala. You can buy it from the store or make your own. I have the recipe fully written under my pav bhaji recipe. If you don't have time to toast and grind everything – just add a little bit of turmeric, cumin, coriander, garam masala, chili powder, and amchur and mix it all together.

  6. Stir in your flour and make sure its well combined to prevent lumps. Then stir in the half and half. And lastly, the peas.

  7. The filling consistency should have some liquid and neither be too thin or thick.

  8. Fill your pie plate with the filling and top with your rolled out pie-crust or puff pastry. Bake at 400 F until crust is golden brown. Serve hot.