Vegan Kheema Pav (sloppy joe) made with spiced cauliflower simmered with tomatoes and warm Indian spices.
Today I have another street food recipe inspired from our visit to Chai Pani restaurant in Nashville. They had Sloppy Jai aka kheema pav on their menu. It sounded so inviting to me but couldn’t order it for obvious reasons. I set out to make my own Vegan Kheema Pav when I got home.
Kheema Pav is a popular street food in Mumbai and is generally made with minced meat. I found quite a few different vegetarian/ vegan recipes using various meat substitutes like soy granules, lentils, crumbled tofu etc. Mine is made with grated cauliflower aka cauliflower rice. I used it to make this fried rice couple of weeks ago.
Processing the cauliflower into smaller pieces makes the texture resemble minced meat a little bit. I also added some coarsely mashed chickpeas too to add protein and texture to the dish. The cauliflower and chickpea mixture is simmered in a spicy tomato sauce that is flavored with warm Indian spices.
The ‘Kheema’ mixture should not be too liquidy or it will be difficult to serve with the Pav (bread). It should be just right to be served over the bread as a sandwich. Kheema Pav is then topped with spicy green chutney, sweetened yogurt and with some homemade pickled onions for crunch.
It is a little messy to eat and it is best to keep a stack of tissues to wipe the face. My son loved it – I didn’t tell him that it was made with cauliflower until after he tasted and liked it. So this is definitely going to be a winner even with kids. Do try this vegan Kheema Pav aka Sloppy joe (or should I say Sloppy Jai) and Enjoy!!
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- 1 tbsp Oil
- 1 Small Onion, finely chopped
- 2 cuos Cauliflower Florets, processed into a fine mixture
- 1 cup Cooked Chickpeas, coarsely mashed
- 1 tsp Ginger+garlic paste
- 1 cup Tomato puree
- 1 tsp Red Chili powder
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- ½ tsp Ground Cumin
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp Cilantro, finely chopped
- To taste salt
- 8 Pav buns/ Slider buns
- As needed Green Chutney
- As needed Sweetened Coconut Yogurt (use regular or soy yogurt)
- As needed Pickled Onions or finely chopped Red Onions
- Heat oil in a pan on medium heat, add the onions, ginger+garlic paste and cook till onions soften, about 3~5 minutes.
- Add the processed cauliflower, mashed chickpeas and cook covered till cauliflower is tender, about 8~10 minutes.
- Add tomato puree, red chili powder, ground cumin, ground coriander, garam masala and salt. Cook covered for the flavors mingle, about 8~10 minutes.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve garnished with cilantro.
- Toast pav/ slider buns and keep ready.
- Serve the prepared kheema over toasted buns topped with green chutney, sweetened yogurt and pickled onions. Serve right away!!
U r rocking with ur street food dishes , Pavani ! What a great idea to use cauliflower rice as a vegan substitute!
I was thinking I have used soya granules till I read chickpeas and cauliflower rice 🙂 wow wow !! Great job
I will say Sloppy Jai..lol. Am sure this Indian style sloppy joe will definitely please my tastebuds. And that cauliflower -chickpeas kheema sounds ultimate for me. Excellent Kheema pav Pavani.
Wow, Vegan Kheema pav looks so good, Pavani. Cauliflower is great substitute for the meat, it looks just like minced meat. You have nailed them. It’s super tempting and extremely appealing !!!
Hats off to your creativity, Pavani. I would love to try the cauliflower filling.
Very creative and love the name, Indian style sloppy joe. That looks exactly like that and with those chutneys its super yum
Keema Pav is a hit, Normally for vegetarians here they make soya keema but making gobhi keema is a wonderful option..even I make this one with a different recipe though. The addition of dahi and chutney must be making the whole burger so delicious.
Love the use of using cauliflower keema for the sloppy buns. I too don’t tell the family any tweaks unless and until they like eating it.
Such a lovely dish . I love all kheema kind of dish.. So yummy and adding it in pav buns makes it really delicious!!
Adding cauliflower rice for meat is quite an innovative idea. I usually think of paneer or soy for veg versions. The pav looks so yum with all the sauces.
A wonderful idea to replace the soya granules or meat with cauliflower. Looking at the pictures,I wouldn’t have guessed that you’ve used cauliflower. A delicious and filling street food.
Wow Pavani, I am literally drooling over the pictures! Such sinful looking sloppy joe indian style..too good yaar!
wow, pavani I love how you replaced soya with cauliflower and chickpeas .. Looks so inviting and such an amazing presentation .. I could go on and on appreciating this dish, The sweetened coconut yogurt makes it very very interesting, It is amazing to see how you have kept the dish vegan without using soya 🙂 Kudos to bring this amazing dish pavani !!
My boys love cauliflower and this recipe is perfect as I totally dislike soya chunks. I am so making this soon. Love the name Indian style sloppy joe.
This has been on my to do list for a while now even though it is a simple dish. I was as usual expecting to see a soya substitute for kheema. You have made it interesting with cauliflower and chickpeas combo. The whole setup looks so inviting.
Its so nice that you used cauliflower instead of other options like soya chunks! The pav looks so good Pavani and I am tempted to make this soon.
Oh my that kheema sounds so yumm pavani!!! Totally loving it!!! Those pictures are making me sooo hungryyy!!!