Stuffed Peppers 2, Mamta's
Bharwan Shimla Mirch or Other Vegetables 2
Mamta Gupta
Green peppers are also known as capsicum or bell peppers. This is a variation of Stuffed Green Peppers Bhaji (Dry Curry) 1, using a slightly different stuffing. It is a favourite of my younger son. You can choose any stuffing of your choice to get different flavours. The stuffing given here can be used to stuff any vegetable that can be hollowed out for a filling, for example, tomatoes, courgettes, marrow and Indian vegetables like tinda & parwal. If you cook a mix of different vegetables, especially in a party, those who don't eat one particular vegetable will be able to take a different one. I do not add any chillies or hot spices to the stuffing for children. My suggestion is that if you are cooking for children as well, use a different coloured pepper for them, say yellow or red. This way, you will know which ones are the mild one.
Instead of a whole pepper, you can also stuff halved peppers. This makes them easier to serve. Place them on a lined tray, drizzle generously with oil (oil is only to help cooking and most of it is left behind in the tray) and cook in a preheated oven at 200º C, for about 30-40 minutes.
Ingredients
6-8 green or yellow peppers. Choose small ones, because they are easier to serve as individual portions.
For the Stuffing:
200 gm. potatoes, 3-4 medium sized ones.
1 onion, medium size, peeled and finely chopped.
1 large tomato, finely chopped
100 gm. cheddar or mozzarella or Parmesan cheese, grated or crumbled.
1/2 inch square piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1/2 -1 tsp. Garam Masala, adjusted to taste
1-2 tbsp. chopped coriander leaves
Salt to taste
2 green chillies finely chopped (adjust to taste)
For cooking:
Cooking oil (1/2 cup if cooking in oven). I use olive oil, but you can use any oil of choice.
Instructions
Cut top off each green pepper, leaving the stalk attached to it. This will be used later to close the opening, like a lid. So keep them aside. If using other vegetables, cut as appropriate and scoop out the inside flesh. Add this flesh to the stuffing ingredients.
Boil (or steam in microwave for 6-7 minutes), cool, peel and finely chop potatoes.
Place chopped potatoes, tomatoes, green coriander, cheese, ginger, garam masala and salt in a bowl and mix well.
Divide into same number of portions as the green peppers.
Fill the children's ones first. Then add and mix green chillies to and a little more garam masala/chillies to the rest of the stuffing, as per your taste.
Fill equal amount into each of the the remaining peppers. Close with the stalk lid, pushing it slightly inside so it does not fall off during cooking.
Heat oven to 200°C or 400° F or Gas mark 6-7.
Place all peppers upright on an aluminium foil lined baking tray, to which a couple of tablespoons of oil has been added.
Drizzle a little oil on top of each pepper, cover with another sheet of aluminium foil and cook for about 1 hour.
Remove the top foil for the last 20 minutes or so, until they look soft and lightly browned.
Alternatively, you can cook in a microwave oven with the lid on for 4 minutes and then with the lid off for 1-2 minute. You can also cook them in deep frying-pan/karahi. Heat a little oil, place stuffed vegetables in it, cook until they are tender and browned. When cooking in a wok/karahi, you will need to turn them over very gently a couple of times to ensure even cooking. *
Serve warm, with a dal, as part of an Indian meal.
*If cooking in a wok/karahi, you can add a tsp. of black mustard seeds or cumin seeds, wait for them to crackle and then add peppers.
