Spice Up the Vegan in You!!

Coming from a place where you get the hottest chillis in the world my love for peppers is inevitable. Even though the recipe I have shared is with sweet peppers, the appeal of a hot chili pickle is unsurmountable. The aroma that fills the kitchen as you roast them is just mouth watering.

Any sweet pepper can be used to prepare this dish. However, the roasting time will vary depending upon the thickness of the skin. I got a bag of medium sized sweet peppers with tender skin and it took me a couple of minutes to roast them in a preheated oven.

A few years ago, I tried “Mirchi ka Salan” with a lot of other dishes in a restaurant in Hyderabad. It kind of stayed with me, but I added a few twists to make it a little healthier. I used two different varieties of nuts and seeds to prepare the Salan. Secondly, the peppers are roasted instead of frying.

If you are planning to make this salan for your guests, you can prepare the nut paste a day ahead. That makes this salan a lot easier. I feel it is a delicious option for vegetarians and my version is vegan. Hope you enjoy this delicious salan with some hot parathas/Indian bread.

Mirchi Ka Salan

Course:  side dish
Cuisine: INDIAN
Preparation Time: 20 Mins
Chilling time 30 Mins
Yield: serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

Cashew 10-12
Peanuts 1 tbsp
Char Magaz (dried melon seeds) 1 ½ tbsp
Sesame seeds 1 tbsp
Desiccated coconut 3 tsp
Onion 1
Mustard seeds ¼ Tsp
Cumin seeds ¼ Tsp
Ginger and garlic paste 1tbsp
Tamarind water ½ cup
Sugar/Jaggery 1 tsp
Red chili powder ½ tsp
Garam masala ½ tsp
Turmeric powder ½ Tsp
Curry leaves few
Sweet peppers 12-15
Fresh coriander 1tsp (chopped)

METHOD

1. Arrange the peppers on a baking tray and spray some oil to coat them.
2. Roast them for a couple of minutes in a pre heated oven (at 180 C).
3. In the meantime, dry roast the cashew, peanuts, melon seeds, sesame seeds and coconut. Blend them into a fine paste.
4. Heat Oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they start to crackle add the curry leaves and cumin seeds.
5. Saute the onion and then add ginger garlic paste along with the powdered spices.
6. Pour the blended paste along with sugar, tamarind water and 2 cups of water.
7. Cover and cook for at least 25-30 min over low heat.
8. Add in the roasted peppers and let the gravy simmer for a couple of minutes.
9. Add chopped coriander and serve.