If you have ever attended a Pakistani wedding, you must have tasted this finger licking ‘Mirchoun Ka Salan’, usually as a part of a the salad bar. Now you can make it at home.. It is super easy and adds a kick to any meal, be it a simple Daal Chawal or any fancy dinner party.

This recipe made its way to our home, all the way from Abu-Dhabi… from my cousin, who lives there… (I told you guys before.. my maternal side of the family lives to EAT!). So that’s all I know about the whereabouts of the origins of this recipe.. but it is one heck of a yummy mirchoun ka saalan, so I tired it and HAD to share it!

Mirchoun Ka Saalan

Ingredients:

• 250 gm Green Chillies (Whole with a little slit in the middle, so the masala can go in)
• 250 gm Onion (Finely sliced)
• 125 gm Tamarind Pulp (Imli…, you can adjust it according to your taste)
• 2 tbsp.  Whole Coriander Seeds (Sabut Dhanaya)
• 1 tsp. Cumin Seeds (Zeera)
• 3 tbsp. Ground Coconut (Fresh or dry, both would work)
• 3 tbsp. Roasted Peanuts
• 1 tbsp. Roasted Almonds
• 1/4 tsp. Turmeric Powder (Haldi)
• 1 tbsp. Ginger Garlic Paste
• 1 Cup Oil (You can use a bit less too,I used about 3/4 cup and then took the extra out after cooking..)

Directions:

1. Fry the green chillies in oil till they become a little soft. Take them out and keep them on the side. (If the green chilies you are using are very spicy, you can discard the seeds..)
2. In the same oil, fry the onions till they turn brown in color.
3. Add a cup of water to the onions and add the ginger garlic paste, salt and haldi to it. Cover it and let it cook on low for about 20-30 minutes on low flame..
4. In the mean time, roast the dry ingredients (Sabut Dhanya, Zeera, Coconut, Peanuts and Almonds) and then grind them into powder.
5. Once the gravy is a lil done and looks like the below, puree it with a blender (I use a hand held blender – just make sure that you take the pot off the flame when you do that..)
6. Add the roasted ground masala to it and let it simmer so the oil comes up (At this point, I discarded some of the oil, as it surfaced on top…).
7. Add the fried green chillies and tamarind pulp and simmer for a little more.
8. You can add curry leaves if you like.. its optional.. (I didn’t add them).

Wasn’t the easy? It is definitely a MUST try!  And by the way, this was my first attempt at, and it turned out perfect!

So enjoy this yummy tangy Mirchoun Ka Saalan…

and have a great weekend!