Saufiyana Shimla mirch

Saufiyana Shimla Mirch – An absolutely versatile curry that can be enjoyed many ways.

Fall is on its peak and  so is the festive season and I am in love with the color red now a days . 

Red screams celebration , red screams love , red screams festive so why not add a little bit of it in your platter .

If you love North Indian curries then you will love this post . Festive season calls for lot of socializing , lot of dinner parties , potlucks and gatherings . I love to host dinner parties at my place and I am always up for trying something new all the time . For Indian themed dinners , North Indian curries have always topped my list of favorites so thought why not keep the classics aside and make something new and exciting – lookswise and flavorwise . Hence made this wonderful saufiyana shimla mirch which is loaded with rich flavors and looks delicious and appetizing  perfect for any occasion . The very first time I made this curry was on last Valentines day . I wanted to make something romantic but not a dessert . So I planned to make this one which replicates little hearts hence you will see that I picked up bell peppers which are slimmer in shape. I had named it love bites 😉 .

Honestly I have got a chance to make this wonderful curry only 4 times this year . Yes this happens if you are a food blogger , a dish seldom repeats itself . But being festive season , I thought of sharing it with you and hope you love it as much as we do. 

We all know the well known stuffed peppers / bharwan shimla mirch – So whats different with this?

Well , I have grown up eating stuffed peppers my mom used to make . But there was a major problem with that and now it is resolved  . The thing is we relished the stuffing i.e the potato masala inside the pepper but the pepper was left uneaten . I have found that this thinly sliced pepper coins makes it easier to gorge on the entire thing happily leaving nothing on the plate. Plus the curry – just heavenly!!

Saufiyana Shimla Mirch curry is split into two parts

firstly  – the shimla mirch / bell pepper coins

Absolutely delightful coins stuffed with paneer , potatoes  delicately spiced and pan-fried until beautiful golden brown .They have a wonderful crunchy texture on the outside and just melts in mouth on the inside – enjoy them as an appetizer  or dunk them in a rich saufiyana gravy and serve it as a part of Main Course .

secondly – the flavorful and rich Saufiyana gravy 

 Sauf / fennel and dill leaves are the star of this gravy which adds so much character and flavor to it and makes it stand apart from other curries. The light sweetness and aroma from the fennel balances out the spice in this gravy . A must try for sure! Skip dill if you don’t have . Refer to the notes.

If you are not in the mood to make bell pepper coin , you can add the following to this gravy 

Suggestions –

Paneer

potato

mix vegetables

Tofu and baby corn 

soya chunks 

As I mentioned VERSATILE indeed 

Saufiyana gravy can be made ahead of time and freezes beautifully – check notes

The recipe idea for this one is partly inspired by Chef Vikas Khanna’s kacche kele ki asharfiya which can be found here. Once I stumbled upon his recipe , I knew I had to make it with my own twists 🙂

I love adding red , orange-colored veggies in our diet not only because they look great and have a wonderful crunch but because they are  rich in beta carotene and so many more wonderful benefits 

did you know – 

Red peppers contain almost 300 percent of your daily vitamin C intake

They are packed with anti oxidants , B6 , magnesium 

Red peppers aids weight loss

Red peppers improves night vision

you can read further health benefits here .

Fell free to use any color peppers , with any shape and sizes .

Enjoy step by step pictorial instructions of bell pepper coins  followed by the recipe , important notes and substitution .

Lets start with the stuffed peppers 

Wash the peppers and pat them dry . Cut off the top of the peppers de seed them carefully and prepare the stuffing

Stuff  the peppers tightly with help of a spoon

Place all the stuffed peppers in a plate , cover with plastic wrap or foil and let it rest in the fridge for 15-30 minutes. This will aid clean cut without the filling falling apart.

Heat a non stick skillet , and meanwhile Carefully slice the peppers , approx 1/4 ” thick with a sharp knife and place them on a plate . See how pretty they look already 🙂

brush them lightly with oil and pan fry them until golden brown each side on low medium heat . It might take 3-4 minutes each side. You can loosely cover them while frying for speedy cooking.

Do not fry on high heat as the peppers will remain uncooked.

They are ready to be relished with a side of chutney or sauce or dunked in the gravy.

stuffed Shimla mirch

Easy to make , delicious bell pepper coins which makes an excellent appetizer or main course

Print

Course Appetizer, main

Cuisine North Indian

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Author Khushboo Kothari

Ingredients

• 2 bell peppers/ capsicum / shimla mirch
• 2 medium size boiled potatoes
• 1/4 cup grated paneer
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder/ haldi
• 1/2 teaspoon red mirch / red pepper powder
• 1/2 teaspoon mint powder optional
• 1/2 teaspoon grounded fennel / sauf
• 1/2 teaspoon rock salt
• pinch of grounded black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon amchoor powder
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. grate the potatoes
2. Add everything to it and mix well . Taste test
3. Fill the peppers as mentioned in the pictorial instructions.
4. Fry it on medium low heat on a non stick skillet , both sides until golden brown.

Recipe Notes

Use desired spices .
Skip paneer if you dont have.
If potatoes feel too dry , add bread crumbs and sprinkle some water to bind.

Saufiyana Shimla mirch gravy

Rich and scrumptious Saufiyana gravy is extremely versatile . Perfect to make any occasion special. Make it ahead of time and freeze .

Print

Course curry, gravy, main

Cuisine Indian, North Indian, Punjabi

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Author Khushboo Kothari

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoon oil
• 1 medium size or 2 small roughly chopped onions
• 4 to matoes – roughly diced tomatoes
• 3-4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
• 2 peppercorns
• 1 clove
• Small stick cinnamon
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tbsp garam masala- u can use garam masala too – add according to ur spice level
• 1 tsp kasoori methi
• 1 tsp sauf powder
• 2 tbsp finely chopped dill leaves
• 2-3 tsp red mirch adjust to the spice level
• 1 tsp haldi dhaniya powder
• ¼ cup warm milk plus 6-7 cashews soaked in it for 10 mins then grind to a smooth paste
• Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a non stick pan with 2 tsp oil. We are using very little oil initially
2. Add onions. Sautee until brown. Add chopped garlic. peppercorn, clove , bay leaf cinnamon sautee 1 min. Add tomatoes and some salt. Give a quick mix. Cook until the tomatoes are tender. Do not add water. Cook for 3 mins or so .Switch off the gas. Let the mixture cool down. Discard bay leaf and cinnamon ,then blend the cooled mixture until a smooth paste.
3. Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a non stick pan
4. When warm .Add all masalas with 1 tbsp water and give a quick stir. Add sauf/fennel powder.Add the prepared puree. Add some water to thin the gravy if its too thick. cover and let it cook for 5 mins, stirring occasionally .Add cashew milk paste. Stir well. Add additional salt if needed. Add kasoori methi and cook for 2 mins. Lastly add finely chopped dill leaves. Its done. Taste test and make adjustments if needed .

Recipe Notes

Skip dill leaves if you don't have
You can use mint or any other herbs instead
Make this gravy ahead of time and freeze it upto 2 months in the freezer .
Just de frost it over the counter for 3-4 hours or in the micro wave . Do not re freeze .
Make a big batch and freeze in air tight containers or freezer safe bags in small one time use portions .

Hope you like this recipe and do give it a try.

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