Mirchi ka Saalan

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Mirchi ka Saalan is a traditional Hyderabadi curry and a common accompaniment to the famous Hyderabadi Biryani. It does have tons of South Indian flavors but goes well with roti or pulav!

Ingredients:
Anaheim peppers - 4 (I have also used Hungarian peppers, they work equally well!)
Water - 1/2 - 3/4 cup
Cumin seeds - 2 tsp
Fenugreek (methi) seeds - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 2 tsp
Masalas - coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric powder, roasted cumin powder (optional)
Curry leaves - a few!
Tamarind paste - 1 tbsp
Jaggery (gud/vellam) - 2 tsp
Salt to taste

Preparing the peppers
De-seed the peppers and cut them into 2" squares. In a non stick pan, heat a tbsp of oil and roast the peppers. 


Paste 1
Onion - 1 medium, roughly chopped
Tomato - 2 medium, roughly chopped
Ginger - 2" piece
Garlic - 3 chubby pods!
Coconut - 3 tbsp
Heat a tbsp of oil and saute ginger, garlic and onions till the onions turn golden brown. Turn off heat and mix in tomatoes and coconut. Let it cool and grind to a paste.

Paste 2
Peanuts - 3 tbsp
White sesame seeds - 3 tsp
In a tsp of oil, roast the two to a golden brown color. Let it cool and grind it to a paste with a little bit of water.

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a non stick pan. Add the seeds (fenugreek in the end of course!) followed by the curry leaves. Pour in Paste1, the masalas, mix well and then add, Paste2, salt, water, tamarind paste, roasted peppers and jaggery. Mix well and let it cook on low heat till the gravy thickens a little bit for about 20-30 minutes, make sure to keep mixing frequently.


Comments

  1. NitikaJuly 13, 2011 at 12:34 PM

    not the regular bell pepper?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anuja KrishnanJuly 14, 2011 at 11:21 AM

    Sure, you could use bell peppers too!

    ReplyDelete
  3. mahaJuly 29, 2011 at 1:16 PM

    loooks yum....didnt know you could use these peppers...shld try

    ReplyDelete
  4. shilpaSeptember 16, 2011 at 12:30 PM

    Tried this out today and came out really yummm! Thanks for sharing a 'not-so-complicated' recipe!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anuja KrishnanSeptember 16, 2011 at 12:42 PM

    Thanks much Shilpa :)

    ReplyDelete

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