Name: Capsicum Zunka | Capsicum and besan ki subzi
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 4 nos Capsicums (cut into cubes); 4 tbsp besan/chickpea flour/gram flour; 2 nos green chilies (slit lengthwise); 1 no large onion (thinly sliced); ½ tsp red chili powder; 1 tsp coriander powder; ¾ tsp salt (or to taste); ¼ tsp turmeric powder; ½ tsp garam masala; 1 tbsp coconut oil + 2 tbsp extra (or any vegetable oil ); ½ tsp mustard seeds; ¼ tsp hing/asafoetida; a sprig of curry leaf

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Capsicum Zunka or Jhunka, a Maharashtrian speciality dish made with besan flour/gram flour and simple pantry spices.

Zunka, a flavorsome dry curry that pairs well with rice and rotis. A pretty quick recipe that can be made easily on a busy day, so it is apt for lunch boxes. Gram flour, called as “kadalai maavu” in tamil and “besan” in hindi. Capsicum zunka, also called as besan wali shimla mirch.

The dish can be made with other veggies like okra, cabbage and also with greens like methi. It takes just 30 minutes to make this curry, so it is great to make when you are in a hurry or when u have surprise guests and don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen.

How to make this subzi

Firstly we need to roast the chickpea flour/besan until it is aromatic and golden. Take care while roasting, do not burn the flour, keep the flame simmer and roast.

Remove the besan to another plate, add oil, temper with mustard, hing and curry leaves. Saute onion and chilies, until onions turn translucent. Next add cubed capsicums, followed by the spice powders. Cover and cook until the capsicums are half done.

Add salt to the curry, and if you feel the masalas are burning, sprinkle water. Once the capsicum is almost done, it is time to add besan to the subzi. Add besan in batches, if you dump it all at once, they will clump together into one big mass.

Keep stirring as you add the flour, add 1 tablespoon of oil to the subzi, this will help it getting the besan crisper, at first it might look as if the besan is clumped with the vegetable, as you keep stirring and add oil, it becomes crisper and separates. Once done, remove from stove, garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve warm.

Capsicum Zunka | Capsicum and besan ki subzi

Zunka or Jhunka, is a Maharashtrian speciality dish made with besan flour/gram flour and simple pantry spices.

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Course: Main Course, Side Dish, Sides

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: Capsicum zunka recipe, How to make zunka, Roti side-dish, Side-dish for rice/roti

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Calories:

Ingredients

4 nos Capsicums cut into cubes
4 tablespoon besan/chickpea flour/gram flour
2 nos green chilies slit lengthwise
1 no large onion thinly sliced
½ teaspoon red chili powder
1 tsp coriander powder
¾ teaspoon salt or to taste
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon garam masala

Tempering

1 tablespoon coconut oil + 2 tablespoon extra or any vegetable oil
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
¼ teaspoon hing/asafoetida
a sprig of curry leaf

Instructions

Wash and capsicums into cubes. Thinly slice the onions and slit the chilies lengthwise.
In a wide pan, add besan/chickpea flour/gram flour and dry roast it until the color changes to a golden brown,take care not to burn the flour. Keep the flame simmer, while roasting
Remove the roasted flour on to a clean plate. Now in the same pan, heat oil given 'Tempering', splutter mustard seeds, add hing and curry leaves.
Next add sliced onions and green chilies, saute until onions translucent.
Next add the cubed capsicums, and saute for a minute or two. To this add red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder. Mix well.
Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes, until the capsicums are half-done. Remove the cover, add salt and 2 tablespoon of water to the curry, mix well and cover and cook for 8-10 minutes.
By this time, capsicums would have cooked well. Now, slowly add the roasted besan/chickpea flour to the subzi and stir well.
Do not add the flour all at once, add it in batches and stir as you add. After adding flour let it cook for another 8-10 minutes in a simmer flame.
It might first look as if the curry is all clumped up together, add 1 or 2 tablespoon of oil to the subzi and mix, as the flour gets crisp, the subzi will separate.
After 5 minutes, remove from heat, garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot with roti or rice.

Video

Disclaimer

I m not a Doctor or a Nutritionist The Nutrition information provided above comes from the plugin and is only an estimate.

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Zunka is the most prefered subzi with capsicum at home. Both my kids hate capsicums and the only way they prefer to eat it is as zunka. They make a delicious side with both roti and rice, in fact when i made them recently i served it with rice.

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Capsicum Zunka/Capsicum and besan ki subzi

How to make this subzi