Recipe for making Bell Pepper Makhani. It is simple, quick & easy dinner. Perfect vegetarian Comfort food. Tastes like it was made in an Indian Restaurant
It is not like I haven’t been betrayed before. I have. Too many times to count…..
But, this latest betrayal has tore me through to my soul and crushed me like the RV in Breaking Bad!
Betrayed by my own family members!
The fact that we share the same DNA was of no consequence to them. It hurt worse than that time I accidentally put my hand into the garbage disposal while it was doing its thing!
So, I spent most of the last 3 weeks curled up in a fetal position and not getting out of bed! The only 2 times I went outside was once to go to the store and once to check the mail. Yes, folks, it was that bad! It was depression that I was am going through (my unofficial diagnosis).
“Enough!!!!” My inner voice screamed at me last Sunday! “Woman, Un-fetalize yourself RIGHT NOW!!”. My inner voice likes to make up words when making an obvious point!
I ran to my fridge and looked for foods that can comfort me…. I couldn’t find any….
So, I decided to make the comfort food myself!
And, thus started my therapy…
I pulled out all the ingredients, arranged them and took this picture: (Not pictured: Regular Whipping Cream, Coriander and Thai Chili. Sorry about that! Beginners error on my part). All the ingredients to make the perfect bell pepper makhani
The first step was cutting the bell peppers into strips.
Then, the onions were chopped. Tears were streaming down my face at this point, although, that could have been from the onions….
Tomatoes were crushed, Garlic and Ginger were crushed and onion sprig was cut to be used as a garnish. Now, I was ready to fire up the stove.
I have to tell you that getting this bell pepper makhani recipe started was very very very cathartic for me. The smell of the Bell Peppers, onions and ginger began to lift my spirits. Have you ever stopped and inhaled the aroma of freshly pulped tomatoes? IT. IS. HEAVENLYYYY!!!
The oil was heated and the mustard seeds began popping. That was a sound that I had missed dearly. Better than anything Beethoven had ever done. Cumin was added, followed by garlic and ginger. Onions were sauteed and this is what it was shaping up to be:
I wish there was a blog that could make you experience the wonderful aroma coming out of my kitchen at this point. Now, the bell peppers were ready to be sauteed. The best thing about making this recipe is the colorful bell peppers. I normally like red bell peppers but I didn’t have any in my fridge.
So, instead, I went with the green, orange and yellow ones. I think it is important to have 3 different Bell Peppers in this bell pepper makhani? Why name something that only has 1 type of bell pepper in it.
The peppers don’t take long to saute. Nine minutes later, I added corn to it and let it saute for about a minute longer. When the tomato puree was added, sweet sizzling sounds could be heard all the way to California.
Okay, I am exaggerating.
Someone should really have invented smellivision by 2013, don’t you think?
The star of this bell pepper makhani really ends up being the whipping cream, if you ask me. It is THE key element in any comfort food, I think. Somehow, it has a way of going straight to my soul and sadly, to my waistline too. But, this was about getting out of the fetal position and not about eating healthy.
So, I let one cup of cream loose! Alright, I added some water too.
And, just like that, I had my comfort food in this bell pepper makhani. I cooked and took the first step in the healing process! I don’t know where this is going to take me or how long I am going to take in the recovery process.
I created this blog to help me find a creative outlet.
I am going to be a healing-in-process for the foreseeable future. Hope you like this Bell Pepper Makhani
Have you tried my Bombay Potatoes recipe?
Bell Pepper Makhani
Bell Pepper Makhani!
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 tsp Mustard Seeds
- 2 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 1/8 tsp Fenugreek optional
- 1 Cinnamon Stick optional
- 2 Cloves
- 3 tsp Garlic crushed
- 3 tsp Ginger crushed
- 3 Thai Green Chili or to taste
- 1 Dried Red Chili
- 2 tsp Red Chili Powder or to taste
- 2 tsp Turmeric Powder
- 3 tsp Cumin Powder
- 1/2 tsp Garam Masala optional or to taste
- 1/4 Cup Soaked Cashews
- 1/2 Cup Sweet Corn
- 1 Green Bell Pepper
- 1 Orange Bell Pepper
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper and/or Red Bell Pepper
- 3 Plum Tomatoes
- 1.5 cup water
- 1/2 tsp Salt to taste
- 1 Cup Heavy Cream or to taste
- 1 Green onion chopped
- Cilantro for garnish
Instructions
Pre-Preparation
- Cut the Bell Peppers into Strips
- Chop the onions, finely
- Crush the Garlic and Ginger
- Soak Cashews in water for about 20 minutes and the finely chop them
- Finely chop the Thai Green chili
- Puree the tomatoes in a food processor
- In a large pan or Wok, heat oil for about 30 seconds
- Add the Mustard seeds and wait for them to start popping
- Add Cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, Cinnamon Stick and Clove. Wait 10 seconds
- Add Dried Red Chili, Garlic and Ginger. Saute for about 15 seconds
- Add Onions and let them caramelize
- Add Red Chili Powder, Turmeric, Cumin Powder and Garam Masala.
- Add the Bell Peppers and wait for their skin to turn a little crispy (About 9 minutes)
- Add the corn and let saute for about one minute
- Add the Tomato Puree and 1/2 cup water. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes
- Add the Cream and remaining water. Let all the ingredients cook for about 5 minutes
- Remove from Stove and place in serving bowl. Garnish with the Green Onion and Coriander leaves. Serve with Nan and/or Rice.
I’m glad you were able to pull out of that dark period. Sounds like you found just the right therapy too! Your meal looks so delicious and I wish there was smell-a-vision so I could enjoy those delicious aromas! Can’t wait to give this a try!
Thank you, Debra.
It is good recipe. Can you add paneer?
Absolutely! I love paneer in everything. I left it out for this recipe because I wanted the bell peppers to be the focus of this recipe.