FOOD TALK
Mirchi march
Pushpesh PantPushpesh Pant

Light, nourishing and tasty, mirchi-murgi ka saalan is an ideal dish for summers

WHO doesn’t know that the city of beautiful Char Minar is as famous for its signature delicacies as for its monuments, exquisitely adorned or magnificently ruined? Mirchi ka saalan in Hyderabad holds its own against redoubtable contenders like dum ki biryani, baghare baigan and khubani ka meetha. We love it but there are times when the palate yearns for something different. No we don’t intend to betray the chilli — the variety we seek is in terms of spicing and supporting cast.

Years ago, we were treated to a north Indian hari mirch ki subzi — yes just that — by Swadesh Jiji, who then lived in a Bengali Market barsati and was yet to embark on a distinguished career in the UN. She lovingly deseeded the chillies and stir-fried these lightly with very thinly sliced pyaaz, sprinkled over with fresh limejuice and cast a unique spell with just a hint of mint and hara dhania that served as more than garnish. If memory is not playing tricks there was also some grated tender coconut to reassure the timid. Then there is the Rajasthani recipe that drapes plump mirchi in an ajwain-laced besan batter and doesn’t deep fry but stir-fries them. There is the southern delight that serves capsicum kari prepared with peanuts in gravy and a whole lot of stuffed Simla mirch avatars — deep-fried or baked stuffed with paneer, aloo or mince. We keep juggling between them but what do we do when yeh dil maange more?

Mirchi murgi ka saalan was born in our kitchen when the desire to pair chillies with mince overpowered us one day. In hindsight, this seems to be an ideal dish for summers — light, nourishing and tasty. Very easy to prepare, it doesn’t hit the piggy bank hard either.

Mirchi murgi ka saalan

Ingredients

Plump green chillies 200 gm

Chicken mince 100 gm

Oil 3 tbsp

Bay leaf one

Cloves two

Brown cardamoms two

Jeera powder `BD tsp

Kashmiri chilli powder `BD tsp

Dhania powder 1 tsp

A pinch of mace and grated nutmeg

Garlic-ginger paste 1 tsp

Tomato (medium-sized chopped

fine optional) one

Salt to taste

Method

Wash, wipe dry and deseed the chillies after slitting them lengthwise ensuring that these are not cut through and only a hollow pocket is created. Keep aside. Heat oil in a non-stick pan. Put the bay leaf and other whole spices. When these begin to change colour, add the garlic-ginger paste and stir-fry for a couple of minutes.

Then add mince and brown well. Sprinkle the powdered masala and blend. Continue frying on medium low flame for about seven to eight minutes. Sprinkle a little water if necessary. (Or the tomatoes, if using). Remove from flame, when the moisture evaporates yet the mince is moist. Allow it to cool. Discard bay leaf and whole spices and pack the chillies with the mince. Lightly fry or just glaze in the same pan. Serve on a bed of remaining mince.





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