Capsicum Bhath: Spring Colours in my Blog!

Capsicum Bhath

Yes, it’s still blank. Did you just ask me what is blank? Arrey, my mind yaar!!! Remember this rant? It’s been close to a week and still the story remains the same. What story? The tragic story of my life, no stories to share! Yes, no rants, no stories and not even gibberish to write as my brain seemed to have frozen my creative corner (?!). Although I have kept my small creative corner to thaw, I am clueless as how long it will take to defrost!

While it’s till on long, extended vacation I will continue to write posts with just recipes which are the important bit of this blog. After all Monsoon Spice is a food blog and somewhere down the line I seem to have deviated a bit and concentrating more on writing my biography than food itself. So this might be the only chance for me to write just about food. And come to think of it, this might be the only chance for my readers to save themselves from unnecessary pain in finger tips and eyes due to excessive scrolling and reading my life saga! So dear reader friend, enjoy this golden opportunity while it lasts because opportunity like this doesn’t come very often ;)

Capsicum Bhath

So what do we have today? Well, we have another plate of delicious flavoured Rice, Capsicum Bhath. Very similar to Vangi Bhath that I had posted last month. Well, the truth is this is THE recipe for Vangi Bhath with just few extra ingredients but the purple beauties baby eggplants have been replaced by the colourful bell peppers. So why blog it when it is the same recipe? Because of Krish. K is allergic (literally) to eggplants and I am one of those nut cases who can eat anything cooked with eggplants every single day of my life (mmm… may be alternate days) and never get bored of it. Other day when I made Vangi Bhath powder I also happened to casually mention about my plan of using it in Capsicum Bhath and I remember him nodding his head. So yesterday when I mentioned about making Capsicum Bhath he didn’t show any interest and instead he had that look on his face when I had initially started cooking. He very much looked like the lab rat of my initial adventures in kitchen. Well, it’s not a very pleasant feeling when your husband doubts your cooking skill after 3 years of cooking (Ok, you can exclude first 6 months from it)!!! So I had this challenge of not only making something that looked appetizing but also delicious enough to make him ask for the second serving.

And boy, did I succeed in doing that or what!!! Not only it looked colourful and very much appetizing, it smelled heavenly. And the best thing of all is he even had it for dinner and licked the bowl clean ;) Now you know why I had to blog this recipe. Although the ingredients used are same as the Vangi Bhath, the taste is very different to that. It had slight sweet bites in between due to coloured peppers and jaggery. While the tamarind juice added wonderful sour note to it and the aromatic homemade Vangi Bhath Masala powder redefined the word ‘tasty’! When served with cool Cucumber & Mint Raita, this delicious plate of Capsicum Bhath was one exceptional meal that reminds us why simple food are the most loved ones. Just one look at that plateful of colourful Capsicum Bhath and I felt I am ready to say good bye to white winters! Don't you feel that the spring is in the air? I do...

Coloured Peppers & Basmati Rice for Capsicum Bhath

Print This Recipe

---

Capsicum Bhath (Spicy and Sour Coloured Bell Pepper Rice)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins (If using leftover rice) to 30 mins
Serves: 4-5
Recipe Level: Easy/Beginner
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With Papad or with any Raita or with a cup of Curds/Yogurt

---

Ingredients:
2 cups Rice or 6-8 cups Cooked Rice (Preferably Basmati or Sona Masuri)
3 medium Capsicums/Bell Peppers (I used red, yellow and green), cut into bite sized pieces
1 large Red Onion, cut into bite sized pieces
1-2 Green Chillies, slit (Optional)
1 small lime sized Tamarind Pulp, soaked in ¼ cups of warm water and juice extracted
1-2 tbsp Jaggery (Adjust acc to taste)
2-3 tbsp Vangi Bhath Powder (Adjust acc to taste)
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
Few Cashews, roasted in little ghee
Salt to taste

For Tadka/Tempering:
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tbsp Urad Dal/Split Black Grams
1 tbsp Channa Dal/Split Chickpeas
2 Dry Red Chillies, halved
2 springs of Fresh Curry Leaves
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida
2 tbsp Oil/Ghee or combination of both (You can use more if needed)

Capsicum Bhath

Method:

Cook rice in enough water and let it cool completely. Then take this cooked rice and add tbsp of oil to it. Mix well making sure that every grain is separate. Keep it aside till needed.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds to it. When it starts to pop and splutter, add jeera, channa dal, urad dal, halved dry red chillies, hing and curry leaves. Sauté till the lentils turn golden brown. Add slit green chillies, if using, and onion pieces to it and sauté till it turns translucent, about 2 mins.
Mix in bell peppers, turmeric and stir well. Keep stirring continuously till every piece of pepper is coated well with tadka and the skin starts to wilt, about 3-4 mins. Make sure that you don’t over cook the peppers and it should retain its crunchiness.
Next add tamarind water, jaggery, vangi bhath powder, and salt to taste and mix well. Cover and cook at medium heat for 2-3 more minutes, stirring in between. When the capsicums are cooked partially, add cooked rice and roasted cashews and mix well. Cook for 2 more minutes till every grain of rice is heated through and the spice mixture is coated well.
Serve this delicious Capsicum Bhath with cool Raita and Papads and enjoy.

Bisi Bele Bhath & Potato Raita: Simple Pleasures of Life

Roasted Spices for Bisi Bele Bhath Masala

Past month has been really hectic in terms of professional and personal terms. So hectic that I missed seeing the daffodil and tulip bulbs that we had planted last year sprout (is that the right word?). I missed noticing how the temperature has been slowly rising to double digits. I missed hearing birds chirping happily in our back garden. I missed to notice that it’s not pitch dark when I leave to my office and when I come back to home from work. I missed so many things till yesterday when I bent to pick the coins that had fallen from my hands and saw these lovely, delicate purple and yellow Crocuses beaming happily at sun.

Yes, spring is in the air… little early perhaps but it is almost there! I stopped on the track to admire those little beauties for a while before rushing to finish my work. The delicate petals of Crocus were fluttering in cool breeze and they looked like a small, happy kids playing in a park, the radiance on their face competing with that of the sun god! The little flowers looked like a bunch of happy kids, their smile so infectious that you can’t help but smile and laugh with them. I just spent few minutes admiring them and I felt good, really good for that matter!(Now you know the reason behind my template make over. It reflects my mood... Cheerful and alive!) Don’t you think its little pleasures like this that uplifts our spirit and makes us happy?

And Bisi Bele Huli Anna or Bisi Bele Bhath or BBB is one such thing that falls into small pleasures of life! Bisi Bele Bhath is a classic rice dish from Karnataka and one of the most loved comfort food. Bisi Bele Huli Anna may not be the pretty, photogenic dish but the its taste more than compensates for everything. It has got heat from that lovely roasted spice powder, hint of sweetness from jaggery, and tangy note from tamarind. But most importantly it is one pot of rice and lentil medley packed with proteins. I usually make fresh batch of Bisi Bele Bhath masala powder but you can also use store bought ones (MTR being the next best thing to homemade). Serve BBB with Raita or Chips/Papad and see your loved ones falling in love with this classic, down to earth dish. This is my humble entry for Susan’s lovely event My Legume Love Affair.

Bisi Bele Bhath

Print This Recipe

---

Bisi Bele Bhath Masala Powder

Prep Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 5 mins
Makes: About ¾ cup
Shelf Life: 1-1½ months when stored in an air tight container and refrigerated
Recipe Level: Easy/Beginner
Spice Level: Medium to Hot

---

Ingredients:
½ cup Desiccated Coconut (unsweetened variety)
½ - 1 tsp Black Peppers
¼ tsp Methi/Fenugreek Seeds
2 inches Cinnamon Stick
4 cloves
1 small Peanut sized Nutmeg
2 Mace (I didn’t have any)
2 tbsp Urad Dal/Split black Lentils
1 tbsp Channa Dal/Split Chickpeas
10-12 Dry Red Chillies (I used combination of Byadagi and normal spicy ones for colour and heat)
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Powder
1½ tsp Coriander Seeds
½ tsp Turmeric Powder

Bisi Bele Bhath Masala Powder

Method:

Heat the pan and add all the ingredients except desiccated coconut and turmeric. Dry roast them on low heat till the lentils turn light golden brown in colour and the spices are aromatic. Transfer these roasted spices into a dry coffee grinder or mixer and wait till they are completely cooled.
Once cooled, mix in desiccated coconut and grind them to fine powder. Store this aromatic Bisi Bele Bhath Masala powder in a dry, air tight container and keep refrigerated and use as and when required. The shelf life of this powder is about one to one and half months.

Bisi Bele Bhath

Print This Recipe

---

Bisi Bele Bhath/Bisi Bele Huli Anna (Rice and Lentil medley cooked with mixed vegetables and roasted spice powder)

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Serves: 6-8
Recipe Source: Amma
Recipe Level: Medium
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With any Raita or with Ghee & Papad/Chips

---

Ingredients:
2 cups Rice (I prefer Sona Masuri. You can also use Basmati rice)
1 cup Toor Dal/Red Lentils
4-6 cups Mixed Vegetables, cut into bite sized pieces (I used Carrots, French Beans, Green Peas, Cauliflower, Potato and Sweet Corn)
1 large Onion, thinly sliced
1 large Lime sized Tamarind Pulp, soaked in warm water and juice extracted (Adjust acc to taste)
1-2 tbsp Jaggery
2-3 tbsp (If using store bought) or ¼ - ½ cup Bisi Bele Bhath Masala (if using home made), adjust acc to taste
½ - 1 tsp Turmeric Powder
Few Cashew Nuts, roasted in little Ghee
Salt to taste
Little Ghee for serving

For Tadka:
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tbsp Urad Dal/Split Black Lentils
1 tbsp Channa Dal/Split Chickpeas
1-2 Dry Red Chillies, halved
2 springs of Curry Leaves
¼ - ½ tsp Hing
2-3 tbsp Oil or Ghee or combination of both

Method:

Although you can cook rice, lentils and vegetables together I follow my mom’s recipe where all three are cooked separately. Traditionally, rice, lentils and vegetables are cooked separately and then mixed together. I find cooking them separately gives it more taste than putting them all in one pot and cooking. I usually cook my rice in microwave and pressure cook vegetables and dal in two separate bowls. This works well for me. You can also mix vegetables with rice and cook them together and later mix them with cooked lentils.
Wash rice and lentils separately till water turns clear. Add 4 cups of water to rice and cook it in microwave bowl for 20 minutes. If using pressure cooker, then 2 whistles is enough.
Add 2-2 ½ cups of water to dal along with few drops of water and turmeric powder. Cook this dal in a pressure cooker along with vegetables (with little salt) for 2-3 whistles till lentils are cooked well. I usually add more water when cooking the vegetables as I like the veggies to be little mushy and blend well with rice and lentils. And the excess water from cooked vegetables is used in BBB for little runny texture.
While the rice, vegetables and lentils are cooked, make tamarind puree, bisi bele bhath powder, and slice the onions.
Once the dal is cooked mash it with a potato masher. Don’t worry if it is too watery. Keep mashed dal, cooked rice and vegetables aside till needed.
Heat oil or ghee in a pan and add mustard seeds to it. When it starts to pop and splutter, add urad dal, channa dal, hing, broken red chillies and curry leaves. Saute till lentils turn golden brown.
Next add sliced onions and sauté till they turn light golden brown in colour. Mix in mashed dal, tamarind juice, BBB masala powder and jaggery and bring them to gentle boil, about 3 mins.
Then add cooked rice and vegetables along with excess water and mix them well. Make sure that the BBB is runny by adding little more water if needed. Adjust the salt.
Mix in fried cashews and serve piping hot with little Ghee and papad/chips and cold Raita and enjoy this heavenly bowl of goodness.

You can serve any type of Raita or just plain yogurt with BBB. But my favourite Raita to be served along BBB is Aloo/Potato Raita. It is refreshing and unbelievably simple to make. Unlike most raitas, Potato Raita uses cooked vegetable and here it is boiled potatoes (obliviously!). The creamy yogurt gently mixed with this root vegetable along with sweet onion, hot green chillies and aromatic Tadka is one helluva of flavour explosion in mouth. And when served with hot BBB… Well, why don’t you try it for yourself and see!

Potato Raita

Print This Recipe

---

Potato/Aloo Raita

Prep Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins
Serves: 3-4
Recipe Source: Amma
Recipe Level: Easy/Beginner
Spice Level: Low
Serving Suggestion: With any Indian flat breads or flavoured/steam cooked rice

---

Ingredients:

1 large potato, cooked, peeled and cut into small pieces
½ -1 small Red Onion, finely chopped
1 small Green chilli, finely chopped (Optional)
Pinch of Red Chilli Powder, for garnishing
1 tsp coriander Leaves, finely chopped
2-3 cups of Yogurt (mixed with ½-1 cup of water if it is too thick)
Salt to taste

For Tadka:
½ tsp Mustard Seeds
1 Dry Red Chilli
Few Curry Leaves
Very small pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
1 tsp Oil

Method:

Mix in yogurt, cooked potato pieces, coriander leaves, chopped chilli, and salt to taste.
Heat oil in a pan and mustard seeds to it. When it starts to pop and splutter, add hing, dry red chilli and curry leaves. Saute for few seconds and then transfer the Tadka to raita and mix well.
Chill the Potato Raita in fridge till required and serve it along BBB sprinkled with little chilli powder on top.