Misal Pav is a rather filling snack and street food from the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is a sort of mini meal consisting of small sized buns called Pav (from Portuguese Pao), and Misal. Misal is a curry of sprouted matki or moath beans and moong beans in a somewhat watery gravy. The Misal is topped with finely chopped onions and fresh coriander leaves. A final topping of Farsan, Chivda or Sev (spicy chickpea based crispies or Indian style trail mix) and a squeeze of lime juice.
Misal Pav is thought to have originated somewhere in western Maharashtra around Nashik and Ahmednagar districts. There are almost hundred year old restaurants in Nashik serving Misal Pav. Misal Pav was one of those affordable meals created to serve daily wage employees. They mostly ate just one filling meal a day. Misal Pav met the bill, while providing a fresh, nutritious and balanced meal.
The Misal can range from mild to pretty fiery in terms of spiciness. Misal itself has two intrinsic parts – Usal and Tarri or Rassa. Usal refers to the cooked sprouted beans whie Tarri or Rassa is the spicy gravy part of the dish. Rassa can be red, black or green depending on how it is made. There is a method to the traditional way of serving Misal Pav. First the usal (cooked spiced sprouted beans) is placed in the individual serving bowl. This is topped with a little potato curry (depending on the region) and then a layer of crisp farsan, sev or chivda. The last layer is chopped onion and fresh coriander. Then the Tarri or Rassa (gravy) is poured into the bowl to complete the dish. Soft pav or sliced bread is served on the side to mop up the gravy.
Misal Pav can be eaten as breakfast, a rather filling snack, sometimes as lunch. While the bread and the sprouted bean curry is standard, there are variations depending on which part of Maharashtra cooks and eats Misal Pav.
Matki or Moath Beans and Moong Beans; Sprouted Beans
Different regions of Maharashtra eat Misal Pav differently. Kohlapur is known for a very spicy Misal that is strong on onions and garlic. Misal in Nashik is also spicy and usually made with only matki or moath sprouts. Here it is usually served with pappad and yogurt as well as pav. Puneri Misal (from Pune) is less spicy and has poha (beaten rice flakes) and boiled potato or potato curry in addition. It tends to have mildly sweet and sour taste with the spice. Nagpuri Misal also has Kanda Poha (spiced onion and beaten rice flake dish) and fresh coconut. Khandeshi Misal from western Maharashtra has a black coloured Tarri or Rassa with dried coconut, and garam masala.
Misal Pav is thus a highly customizable kind of dish. So my version of Misal Pav is not all that spiced or spicy. The spice blend I tend to use is the Maharashtrian Goda Masala. Goda Masala has various spices and an edible dried lichen called “dagad phool”(see image below). When cooking unfamiliar food, it is best to go to those whose native cuisines they are. So Anita’s is my go-to-recipe for Goda Masala. I like the idea of Puneri style of serving a comparatively blander potato curry. It balances out the spice in the Misal. The yogurt further balances out the Misal Pav meal.
The recipe below is my personal and very adapted version of Misal Pav. So it is neither traditional nor authentic but an easier version with the flavours of Misal. You can use one of the two kind of beans or a half and half mix of both. Make the sprouts at home or get them from the store if available. About 1/2 to 3/4 cup of dried beans should produce 2 cups of sprouts. You can always use the extra sprouts in other dishes or add them to salads.
Dagad Phool (Kal Paashi or Stone Flower; Goda Masala
Soak the dried beans in enough water to cover them for about 6 to 8 hours. Drain the water completely and sprout them in a sprouter. Otherwise loosely tie the drained beans in a damp thin cotton towel or muslin cloth. They should sprout in about 6 to 10 hours depending on ambient weather conditions. Refrigerate in a dry flat container if not using immediately, for about 2 days at most.
In India, sprouts are used at the stage where the bean has roughly a half inch long tail and no leaves. I like to use a mix of matki or moath beans and moong beans. Both of them sprout in about the same time. Cook the sprouts with a little extra water (not too much though), as this liquid is used to cook the Tarri or Rassa. The sprouts should be cooked soft.
Misal can be cooked with different types of masla or spice mixes. I use Goda masala, but you can use ready-made misal masala, garam masala or pav bhaji masala. Misal is typically cooked to be on the spicier side, but you can adjust that to your preference. Ghee is the preferred fat to cook this dish, but you can use oil instead.
The Misal and the Tari or Rassa are typically cooked separately and mixed at the time of serving. I prefer to cook them together as one dish. This is the way Mumbai Misal is cooked. This is cooked ahead and the different parts come together just before serving. I like serving a potato curry on the side. You could omit this and instead add a couple of boiled potatoes, peeled and chopped, while cooking the Misal. You can serve the Pav (somewhat like slider buns) plain or buttered. Sliced bread is acceptable instead of Pav.
Misal Pav
Ingredients
For the Misal:
- 1 cup moong bean sprouts
- 1 cup matki or moath bean sprouts
- 3 cups water
- 1 tbsp ghee or oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 cup minced onion
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic or paste
- 1 cup finely chopped tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp poppy seeds
- 3 to 4 dried red chilli Byadgi chillies
- 2 tbsp well toasted coconut
- 1 tbsp ghee or oil
- 1 1/2 tsp Goda masala
- 1 tsp tamarind paste
- Salt to taste
- 1 tbsp jaggery
- More water if needed
For the Topping:
- 2 cups Farsan/ Chivda/ Sev
- 1 1/2 cups minced onion
- 1 cup finely chopped tomatoes optional
- 3/4 cup chopped fresh coriander
For the Potato Curry:
- 1 1/2 tsp oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 to 2 green chillies chopped
- 4 large potatoes bolied peeled and chopped
- Salt to taste
For Serving:
- 6 to 8 Pav or slider buns
- Butter for the buns optional
- A few wedges of lime
Instructions
Make the Misal:
- Cook the sprouted beans in the 3 cups of water till they’re cooked soft. Like most Indian kitchens, I use the pressure cooker for this. Drain the beans and reserve the water they were cooked in. This water will be used in the Tarri or Rassa of the Misal later. Keep aside.
- Heat 1 tbsp of the ghee or oil in a largish pan/ pot on medium heat. Add the mustard seeds and let them pop. Then add the curry leaves and minced onion. Sauté till the onions are soft and a light brown. Add the ginger and garlic and cook till the raw smell disappears.
- Now add the tomatoes and cook, stirring frequently, till they turn mushy. Add the coriander, cumin and turmeric powders and cook for a couple of minutes till the oil bubbles up on the edges. Take the pan off the heat and let it cool for a while till it is barely warm.
- Empty this mixture into the blender jar. Add the fennel seeds, poppy seeds, dried red Byadgi chillies and the well toasted coconut as well. Blend to a smooth paste using a little of the reserved liquid from cooking the sprouts.
- Heat the remaining 1 tbsp of ghee in the same pan. Add the paste and sauté for a couple of minutes. Stir in the Goda masala and the cooked sprouts. Add the reserved liquid to the pan with salt and tamarind paste. Stir well and bring it to a boil. Turn down the heat and let the Misal simmer for about 10 minutes till it starts thickening. Stir in the jaggery and add a little more water if you feel the consistency needs adjustment.
- Turn off the heat. Misal needs to be served warm. You can always warm it up just before serving if necessary.
Make the Potato Curry:
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the turmeric powder, curry leaves and chopped chillies. Stir a couple of times and add the boiled and chopped potatoes and salt. Mix really well and let this cook for about five minutes, stirring occasionally. Take it off the heat. This is ready to serve.
Putting the Misal Pav together:
- Use a small serving bowl the size of a largish soup bowl for each person. Ladle the Misal into each bowl, filling it to about two thirds. Make sure there is enough of the liquid gravy.
- Add about a generous tablespoon of minced onion and then tomatoes to the bowl. Then add some chopped coriander. Garnish with a generous amount of the crisp Farsan/ Chivda/ Sev. Serve with one or two Pavs per person, plain or buttered. Also serve the remaining minced onion and chopped tomatoes with larger bowls of the potato curry and yogurt on the table as accompaniment.
I'm Aparna and My Diverse Kitchen is my ovo-lacto vegetarian food blog where you'll find recipes, food stories & photography. I've been blogging since 2007 and believe the kitchen, and the dining table (by extension) is really the heart of a home. 
Your misal pav recipe is a flavour explosion that took me on a culinary journey to the streets of Maharashtra! The combination of sprouts, spices, and the luscious gravy is truly irresistible. The symphony of flavours and the complexity of the spices in the misal gravy were a revelation.