Name: Misal pav (Mumbai style)
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: PT12H (overnight sprouting)
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 200g mixed sprouts (matki/moth, mung, chickpea); 2 medium onions, chopped fine; 3 tomatoes, chopped; 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste; 2 tablespoons misal masala (or garam masala); 1 teaspoon red chilli powder; 1 teaspoon turmeric; 2 tablespoons coconut, grated; 3 tablespoons oil; Salt to taste; 200g farsan (sev, chivda, fried lentils mix); 8 pavs, buttered and toasted; Lime wedges, chopped onion and coriander for serving

Sprout curry topped with farsan (crunchy fried mix), onion, coriander and lime, served with buttered pav. A Maharashtrian breakfast institution.

Misal originated in the Pune-Nashik belt as a working-class breakfast in the early 20th century, built around sprouted moth-bean curry with crunchy farsan on top. Mumbai adopted the pav-served version through the mill-worker era of the early 1900s, and today the city's Maharashtrian breakfast counters and South Bombay rooms still serve it daily with a wedge of lime and chopped onion.

3 editor picks for Misal pav in Mumbai, ranked by editorial score. All Mumbai signature dishes · Misal pav across every city.

Sardar Pav Bhaji ★ 4.6

Street food

tardeo · 166-A Tardeo Main Road Junction, Tardeo, Mumbai 400034

Sardar at the Tardeo bus depot has been the Mumbai pav bhaji benchmark for decades. Butter swims on the griddle; the masala is hot and the pav is buttered.

Soam ★ 4.4

Gujarati and Maharashtrian

chowpatty · Sadguru Sadan, Ground Floor, Babulnath Road, Chowpatty, Mumbai 400007

Pinki Dixit's Soam in Chowpatty has poured Gujarati and Maharashtrian home cooking since 2005. The khichdi runs seven different grains and the undhiyo.

Cream Centre ★ 4.2

Indian

chowpatty · 25/B Chowpatty Seaface, Chowpatty, Girgaon, Mumbai 400007

Cream Centre opened at Chowpatty Seaface in 1958 as a vegetarian sweets and snacks counter. The channa bhatura is the canonical dish; the hot fudge sundae.

Learn to cook it, or eat it with a guide

Misal pav makes more sense with someone from Mumbai explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.

Book food experiences in Mumbai

Mumbai: Local Transport & Dabbawalla Lunch Box Delivery Tour

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Join us on a tour of the city's iconic transport! We're talking about hopping into those yellow and black taxis,super-fast suburban trains, and cruising around on the ...

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Mumbai Dharavi Slum, Dhobi Ghat & Dabbawala Lunchbox Tour

Guided tour3.5 hours5.0 from 25 reviewsfrom ₹1,658

Explore Mumbai with our Dharavi Slum Walking Tour, visit the Dhobi Ghat,and learn about the dabbawala’s famous food delivery system. Experience the city's daily life a...

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