Pav - How to make soft pav bread at home (2024)

Published: Jun 4, 2021 | This post may contain affiliate links·

Pav is an Indian bread made with very basic ingredients. Follow this easy recipe for the softest, pillowy pavs, that you can make easily at home

What is 'Pav' or 'Pav Bread'?

'Pav' is the soft, pillowy bread rolls that is served with the popular Indian Pav Bhaji, and traditional bread made in local bakeries in India.

In the Indian state of Goa where I grew up, pav is firmly embedded in the food culture. Every village has at least one family-run bakery that bake batches of pav, which the baker (called as 'poder') then sells on his cycle, honking away to notify customers. As kids, we would wait in anticipation at the street corner to hear the poder's horn, and turn in our coins for some warm loaves of pav.

There is something about the smell and taste of this wholesome bread, made with simple and basic ingredients, that warms you up from the inside!

The texture and smell of a freshly baked loaf of pav bread cannot be found in store-bought bread. I have been making this bread for some time now, and this recipe is what I am happiest with. It is a slight deviation from traditional pav bread which uses only flour, water and yeast (and some strong kneading), which is understandable as this is made for the masses. I add a little bit of milk to my recipe....because I am extravagant like that! No really, I find it improves the flavor quite a bit. The addition of milk does make them similar to a classic dinner roll, but you could omit the milk and replace it with water if you like.

Pav is the perfect bread to serve with Pav Bhaji, and pairs well with most Indian Recipes. Some of my favorite combinations include Pav with Aloo Matar or Vegetable Korma or Butter Chicken.

How to make Pav at home

Pav is one of the easiest breads you can make at home. It is similar to dinner rolls, except that dinner rolls use both milk and eggs to enrich the dough. Pav bread typically uses only flour, water, yeast, and salt but I like to add some milk to make the bread softer in texture. Here is how you make them:

Measure out 500 grams of flour - use bread flour for best results. If you are using active dry yeast, let the yeast activate in 1/2 a cup of slightly warm milk with a teaspoon of sugar dissolved in it. Use 7 grams of active dry yeast for 500 grams of flour. Let the yeast sit in the milk for around 8 minutes until it is frothy.

You could use instant yeast as well, in which case you simply add instant yeast to the flour directly.

We will also need 50 grams of butter at room temperature and 1/2 a cup of water. Mix together all the ingredients, using your hands or in a stand mixer.

After the dough is kneaded well, we will let the dough proof for the first time. To speed up this process you could use an Instant Pot in the 'Yogurt' setting. Let the dough proof for 50-60 minutes, until the dough has doubled in size.

If you are not using an Instant Pot, simply keep the dough in a greased bowl covered with a clean towel, for 90 minutes, until the dough is double in size.

After the dough has doubled in size, knead it again, knocking the air out of it.

Portion out the dough into 12 equal pieces. Knead and shape into ball-shaped portions and place in a greased baking dish. Let the dough proof for the second time, in a warm place for around 40-45 minutes. Once the dough has risen again, brush the top of the dough-balls with a mixture of milk and melted butter.

Bake the dough in the oven at 180C for 20 minutes. Once done, take out the tray and brush the tops with some melted butter for a glossy finish. Serve warm.

Expert Tips

• Make sure that your yeast is fresh and properly activated before using. Yeast that is not activated or is expired will not make the dough rise.
• Make sure you proof the dough twice as mentioned in the detailed steps above. This will help the bread to rise well.
• You can use an Instant Pot to speed up the proofing process, however, you can also optionally use an oven (unheated) with the oven light on to create a warm atmosphere for the dough to double in size.

Recipes that pair well with pav

Pav Bhaji (the perfect combination for pav bread!)

Chickpea coconut curry

Egg Curry

Chicken Korma

Shrimp Curry