FOOD TALK
Mirchi march
Pushpesh 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.

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