Pav Recipe | Ladi Pav | Pav Bread

Making dough

1. In a bowl take 1 cup of all-purpose flour, instant yeast and sugar.
2. Add 1 cup lukewarm water. Stir or whisk to make a smooth thick batter without any lumps.
3. Cover and keep the bowl for 30 to 40 minutes till you see a bubbly and frothy layer on the top. The batter would also have risen.
4. Add oil, salt and 1 cup flour. Mix with a spoon or spatula.
5. Next add 1.25 cup flour. Mix again and then begin to knead for about 10 to 12 minutes.
6. If the dough appears sticky then you can about ¼ cup flour more or as needed. The proportion of water to be added, depends on the quality of the flour. I added 3.25 cups flour for 1 cup of lukewarm water.
7. Knead very well to a smooth, soft, supple and elastic dough.
8. Place dough in a bowl. Spread oil or softened butter all over the dough.

Leavening pav dough

1. Cover the bowl with a lid or a kitchen cotton napkin and keep the bread to leaven for 20 to 25 minutes.
2. Once the pav dough has risen and doubled, then gently punch and deflate the dough and form a neat log.
3. Cut the log into equal sizes. Take each portion and roll between your palms to get a smooth round roll.
4. Make rolls this way and place them in a greased tray keeping 1 inch space between all of them.
5. Cover and allow the second rise for 25 to 30 minutes. The small buns would increase in size.

Baking ladi pav

1. Just before 15 minutes you bake the pav, preheat the oven at 200° C/ 390° F.For a regular oven, heat both the top and bottom elements. For a microwave oven with convection mode, preheat for 15 minutes at 180° C/356° F.
2. Then brush the pav buns with some milk. This gives a golden color to laadi pav.
3. Place the baking tray in the center rack in a preheated oven at 200° C/ 390° F for 25 to 30 mins or till the tops turn golden and the pavs sound hollow on tapping. For baking in the microwave oven at convection mode, bake at 180° C/356° F.
4. Remove them from the tray (with a spatula) and place on a wired rack or wired tray, so that they don't become softened and moist from the bottom due to heat condensation.
5. Brush melted butter or spread softened butter on top of the pavs. This is an optional step.
6. Serve the Pav warm or at room temperature with any curry, vegetable dish or just as plain bun maska pav (buttered rolls) served with masala chai.
7. Pav can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week. Keep them in air-tight a container or a bread box.