This post is a dedication to my hubby on his new job offer and today was his first day at work. It certainly wasn’t an easy task finding a job during these economic times, so this made his moment extra special and I’m so proud of him.
Today I rushed home and surprised him with a gift from his favorite store, other little items, and a Cinnabon for myself him to celebrate his accomplishments. Haha! Of course, when I made a big deal about his new job, he was being rather modest about it and felt there was no need to celebrate. My thing is no matter how big or small a moment is, it should be celebrated with the ones you love, at the very least your spouse/significant other. What better way to celebrate than this beautiful Cinnabon we both devoured and a coffee mug with priceless words of wisdom?
I took the celebration one step further and made him some Indian food because nothing makes him happier than a home cooked Indian dish made by yours truly. Yes, I believe he has gotten used to my cooking and loves the way my food tastes. Today I made Aloo Shimla Mirch which is essentially potatoes cooked with red and green bell peppers. Traditionally, every ingredient in this dish is cubed, I just sliced everything up due to lack of time. Aloo Shimla Mirch goes really well with Roti/Naan and some yogurt to lessen the spice effect.
OMG, he’s gonna get so mad at me when he sees this post… please don’t be mad. 🙂
Tell Me: How do you surprise your hubby?
NUTRITION: Potatoes are a good source of Vitamin C and Fiber. Bell Peppers are a great source of Vitamins A, B6, and C.
INGREDIENTS:
- Olive Oil – 1 1/2 tbsp
- Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
- Turmeric Powder – 1/2 tsp
- Red Onion – 1 big (sliced)
- Red Pepper – 1 big (sliced)
- Green Pepper – 1 big (sliced)
- Potatoes – 2 medium (sliced)
- Red Chili Powder – 1 tsp
- Coriander Powder – 2 tsp
- Garam Masala – 1/2 (use less here if you can’t handle heat)
- Salt to taste
DIRECTIONS:
1. Slice the onion.
2. Heat a pan on medium heat. Once hot, add oil. Wait a minute and add cumin seeds. Saute for 15 seconds or so, once they sizzle…
3. Add turmeric powder. Saute about 5-10 seconds.
4. Add sliced onions and salt. Combine. Saute for 5 minutes or slightly golden.
5. In the meantime, slice the red and green bell pepper.
6. This is how the onions should look after 5 minutes.
7. Add the bell peppers and salt. Combine. Lower heat to dial #3 (low heat). Cook for 5 minutes.
8. In the meantime, peel 2 potatoes.
9. Slice, this should almost look like a French fry.
10. Once done, check on the bell peppers, this is what you should have after 5 minutes.
11. Add potatoes, red chili powder, coriander powder, and salt. Combine.
12. Cook for 5 minutes without a lid. MISSED TAKING A PICTURE!
13. Cover with a lid and cook on dial #3 (low heat) for 25 minutes. Keep checking in between to avoid burning.
14. After 25 minutes this is what you should have. Check to make sure the potato is soft and edible. Now adjust salt and add garam masala. Turn off the stove. Combine.
delicious dish!
Congratulations to your husband on his new job. Indeed a thing to celebrate during this job market. I love the idea of the coffee mug with an inspirational quote… and the cinnamon bun to go with it 😉 I've been wanting to do more cooking with Indian spices and this recipe seems like a simple, but good starting point.
@Flirting with Flour… Thank you, how nice of you to say that! There are several other simple Indian recipes on my site, browse around. 🙂
What a great, simple recipe for starting out with Indian cuisine! Thanks!
And about the surprising ones significant other – I generally go for a vegan sandwich-cake! (I'm Swedish, so I suppose it's a traditional delicacy!)
Hello, thanks for posting this. I keep experimenting with my cooking. How would you like it if you threw in potatoes first after onions. And add in peppers after potatoes cook for some time. This way, I noticed, there will be no chances of potatoes being felt slightly uncooked or peppers being over-cooked. And since peppers cook for lesser time it retains more of its green nutrients! 🙂
@Santosh – You are right, thanks for the advice. My mom suggested the same thing to me. I will rework this recipe and correct it. 🙂
We made this last night and it turned out really good. The pictures made it very easy to follow the recipe.
I'm trying this right now! I hope it works!
You killed the peppers!!! Why not put the potatoes after onion and then the peppers?
@Anonymous – I wouldn't say I "killed" the peppers.. but sure you can add the potatoes after the onion and peppers later.. my mom suggested that as well. Either way, this dish should turn out tasty.
There is a reason why we add peppers first.
A) If you add peppers first they get sauteed in whatever oil little or not is there. This adds special flavor to the dish.
B) Potatoes get very easily infused with flavors. Once you put in potatoes and cook it, the flavor of capsicum is carried over to potatoes and in short the whole dish.
So, the order of things will make a huge difference in how this recipe will taste.
Thanks..
— Neha
Thanks for your feedback, Neha. I added the peppers before the potatoes, didn't think it would make a difference but good to know. Thanks.
Use boiled potatoes.
That's really a cool surprise. I would suggest 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4h33vwADSs' in starters to check it out.