SHIMLA MIRCH AALU WITH SOYA CHUNKS recipe

I literally hated cooking. I still do at times.

However, when I started learning, I discovered that cooking too is a creative field and being a creative Piscean I somehow developed a liking for it. For instance, take Shimla Mirch Aalu Sabzi. I personally find it very boring. However, take the creative freedom of adding chunks of paneer to it or soya chunks. Trust me; the boaring sabzi will get a dramatic savoury twist.

We are not spending this weekend at home and hence I am compelled to empty my vegetable tray in refrigerator. So, I decided to finish the stock of Shimla Mirch and prepare SHIMLA MIRCH - AALU with SOYA CHUNKS for dinner. Here goes the recipe:-

We bought 250 gms Shimla Mirch. Looks like a very small quantity; however, when mixed with potatoes and soya chunks, it will result in a copious amount. I took one big potato and 3/4th bowl of soya chunks. You may vary the quantity as per your taste preferences. I love soya bean chunks and hence always try to maximize soya quantity.

In the first step I washed, deseeded and cut the Shimla Mirch. I prefer long pieces so I made 5 vertical slices of each. You may vary here again. Washed the potato, peeled it and cut it in long pieces to match the shimla mirch.

As I did the above mentioned things, I also had soaked the soya chunks in salt water and boiled it for a minute. This makes the chunks soft. After draining the water and squeezing the chunks to free it from remaining water, I fried it. Frying kills the raw smell. I prefer frying the soya chunks in mustard oil.

After frying soya, I fried the cut potatoes. Some people do not fry it beforehand and let the potato soften while preparing the final subzi. But I lack patience and prefer half processing the potatoes beforehand as it takes maximum time to soften.

In the next step, I heated one table spoon of refined oil in wok for final preparation. Do not put much oil as the soya chunks and potatoes are already fried. A little oil is required to cook the spices and Shimla Mirch. The first ingredient to go in the oil was cumin seeds, followed by finely sliced onion and ginger- garlic paste. After the onion turned a slight golden brown and the ginger garlic paste lost raw smell, one medium sized tomato was pureed and added.

  

I used the grater to puree tomato. Using mixer grinder every time is rather tedious than helpful. You may also finely chop the tomatoes instead of making puree.

Keep stirring the ingredients at regular interval and cook on a medium flame. The ginger tends to stick to the wok so do not let the ingredients sit for a long time. The base will burn otherwise.

Next, the dry spices were added. I teaspoon red chilli, ½ teaspoon coriander powder, ½ tea spoon cumin powder, a little turmeric and salt as per taste. You may experiment by adding kitchen king masala or maggi bhuna masala or any other masala to enhance the flavour. I avoided adding any such masala as my husband always complains that I overdo when it comes to spices. Yes, he is right. I love the aromatic spices and I love my meals all spicy and hot. :-)  

Moving on with the recipe, if you find the spices getting very dry and sticking to the bottom sprinkle some water and stir. After cooking for couple of minutes, when the spices left oil, I mixed in the Shimla Mirch, Potato pieces and soya chunks and mixed it well with the spices.

After this, my side of the cooking story was over and the flame had to do the remaining job. I left the dish covered for cooking on a medium flame and kept stirring it in between. After 7-10 minutes the potatoes and shimla mirch were done. I always check if the potatoes are cooked well using a fork.

There is an old belief that one should not eat (or taste) while cooking. I would differ and advice to always taste at the end of preparation. This gives you a confirmation that the salt and chilly is mixed in right proportion and you may give finishing touch to the dish if necessary.

The ultimate outcome was very delicious and the soya chunks had added an impressive twist as expected. CHECK IT OUT & TRY IT OUT ………… SOME PICTURES FOR THE TIME BEING

:))