Stuffed Green/Red Chillies With Gram Flour and Spices, In Air-frier
Bharwan Hari Mirch, In Airfrier
Recipe based on my mother inlaw, Mrs. Kiran Devi Gupta's Recipe
Note from Mamta; This recipe is loosely based on my late mother-in-law Mrs. Kiran Devi's stuffed chillies recipe. She was a strict vegetarian, not even eating onions and garlic. Onions were considered a ‘Tamsik' food and many people of her generation did not eat them.
The difference here from her recipe is that I have added onion and cooked them in an air-fryer. An air-fryer takes a fraction of the time taken when cooked in a Karahi/wok. they are usually eaten like a pickle, one-two chillies per person per meal
The pictures here show some sweet red pepper in the food processor. I added it because it happened to be lying around, you don’t have to.
Makes 10-12
Ingredients
350 gm. finger thick green chillies. Finger chillies are usually not very hot, somewhere between a hot chilli and green pepper.
2 heaped tbsp. gram flour or Besan. Besan is sometimes lumpy. Strain it through a fine sieve before using.
1 small onion, peeled and roughly chopped
A small piece of ginger root, peeled and roughly chopped
3 level tsp. coriander powder
1 level tsp. chilli powder, more if you would like them really hot. Amount depends upon how hot you green chillies are.
1 level tsp. turmeric powder
1 1/2 -2 level tsp. salt
1 level tsp. Garam Masala. Use 1 1/2 tsp. if it is shop made, because it is often less flavoursome.
1 tsp. tamarind puree or concentrate. I often replace it with a slice of lemon, including the skin. Skin is where all the flavour is.
1 full tsp. ground fennel or sonf/saunf
1-2 tbsp. mustard or olive oil to cook. I use a sprayer, much easier to give a coating of oil to each chilli.
Instructions
Wash and wipe the chillies dry with a towel. Trim stalks, if too long.
Slit along the entire length of each chilli. Keep aside.
Dry fry besan/Bengal gram flour in a wok or karahi until it gives a nice, roast aroma and looks golden brown in colour. Turn heat off and take it out of the pan. Otherwise it will keep cooking and burn.
Chop onion and ginger in a chopper to fairly fine.
Add and mix, fried Besan flour, all the spices and salt.
Divide the mixture in portions to fill each chilli. You can always use the leftover filling to stuff a couple of tomato halves or double thickness, shelled onion skin. See pictures.
Fill one portion of this mix into each chilli, using a teaspoon or your fingers.
Line the base of your air-frier with a wax paper. I do it to save the washing up, you don’t have to.
Drizzle/spray some mustard oil, or a cooking oil of choice, liberally on top .
Cook on full, mine is 200C and I don’t preheat it, for 5-6 minutes.
Gently turn over the chillies, using tongs or a spoon and a fork. Cook again for 4-5 minutes. Give a few more minutes, if you want them browner.
Stuffed green chillies can be used to make Chapati/Roti Rolls.
This recipe can be used to make other stuffed vegetables like stuffed bhindi (okra), stuffed baingan (aubergine/brinjal/eggplant) and any other small green vegetables like Tinda (little, green gourd) and Parval (another small, pointed, Indian green gourd).
