These Batch-Baked Rolls, or as we like to call them Ladhi Pav, are enriched with rich butter, whole milk, and eggs making them pillowy soft. We like to spread some salted butter on one of these babies as soon as they’re out of the oven and put it straight into our mouths. If you’re not already a carboholic, like us, these rolls will be sure to convert you.
We like to pair these rolls with batata vadas (spicy potato fritters with a chickpea coating), misal (savory lentil soup), or some hot chai. The bread is melt-in-your-mouth but sturdy enough to not fall apart when dipped into soups or spread with chutneys.
This bread is a household staple in our family’s home in India. As a kid, Natasha used to request these every day in Mumbai and her grandparents, Sujata’s parents, used to bring a fresh batch every morning straight from the local bakery. Since we can’t all just get up and go to India every time we have a pav craving, we developed this recipe and trust us, they’re just as good.
We’ve lost count how many times we’ve made these and every time, they are spot on. The best part, other than eating them of course, is that they’re simple to make. You do require some patience during the proofing time but making the dough involves just mixing all the ingredients together.
If you make this Ladhi Pav (Batch-Baked Rolls), drop a comment and/or give it a rating! We’d love to hear how it turns out. Also, if you make this recipe, make sure to tag us on Instagram!
Ladhi Pav (Batch-Baked Rolls)
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp warm water about 95 F
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp active-dry yeast
- 5 cups all-purpose flour (625 g) sifted
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 eggs beaten
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter (60 g) at room temperature
- 1 cup milk (250 g) warm
Instructions
- Mix the 4 tbsp of warm water with the 1 tsp of sugar and once the sugar is dissolved, add the yeast. Set aside for about 5-10 minutes or until the yeast has bubbled up.
- While the yeast proves, mix the flour, salt, eggs, and butter together in a large bowl or in a bowl of a stand mixer. Add the yeast and mix. Add the milk little by little while kneading the dough. Once all the milk has been added, knead the dough for 5-10 minutes. The dough will start out quite wet but will eventually become elastic and smooth. We recommend using a stand mixer but this can be done by hand as well.
- Once the dough is smooth, cover the dough with a towel and let it rise for at least an hour or at least doubled in size.
- Fold the dough inwardly until all the air is knocked out from the dough. Roll out the dough into a 2-inch diameter log. Cut the log into 24 evenly sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place on a parchment lined baking sheet, leaving about ¼-inch of room between each piece. Cover the balls and let them rest for about an hour or until they are at least doubled in size.
- About 15-20 minutes before the dough is done proofing, preheat the oven to 425 F.
- Bake the buns for 15-20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Serve warm with some butter brushed over the tops.
