Capsicum Kura is an Andhra bell pepper curry or sabzi that's made with curry leaves, green chilies, onion, tomatoes, and green bell pepper.
When I was in college, I met my bestie, Anu. She's of South Indian descent, specifically speaking, her parents are from Andhra Pradesh.
After college, I started going over to her home and that's when I was introduced to the incredible tasting - Andhra cuisine. Prior to meeting Anu, I just assumed South Indian food was all the same and it was all idli, dosa, sambar, and uttapam. Ignore my ignorance.
Never did I imagine each region of India had its own style of making the same dish that's popular in the country. Crazy, right? India is such a diverse land.
I would spend hours and hours learning how to cook Andhra food from Anu's mom, while Anu didn't quite understand why I chose to hang out with her mom learning to cook rather than her. Lol. Well, I guess I always had this desire for cooking.
What is Capsicum Kura?
Capsicum Kura literally means Bell Pepper Curry. This Andhra dish is called Capsicum Kura which is made with bell peppers, dals, and spices including chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, and more.
I honestly never knew green bell peppers could taste this good. Enjoy this dish with white jasmine rice or basmati rice. Your soul will be so happy.
Why You'll Love Capsicum Kura
- Simple and delicious
- Made with basic ingredients
- Quick & easy weeknight meal
- Perfect on a cold day
- Enjoy with white basmati rice
- Flavorful
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
Ingredients
Green Bell Pepper - You'll definitely need 3 medium to large green bell peppers. I just use my favorite chopper which uniformly chops them up.
Red Onion - Cook these until they're translucent and golden, you don't want to brown these all the way.
Ginger/Garlic - Classic flavorings for most Indian dishes. Make sure to chop the ginger and garlic.
Green Chilies - You can either chop or slit the green chilies. I prefer to slit since I'm cooking for my husband and toddler who can't handle too much spice.
Tomatoes - Chop tomatoes, preferably plum or Roma.
Whole Spices - Chana Dal, Urad Dal, Mustard Seeds, Cumin Seeds.
Powdered Spices - Turmeric Powder, Coriander Powder, Red Chili Powder, Garam Masala, and Salt.
Curry Leaves - This adds so much flavor.
Water
How to make Capsicum Kura
1. Chop ginger, garlic, onions, tomatoes, and green bell peppers. Slice green chilies.
2. Set aside curry leaves and all the seeds/dals (chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds, cumin seeds).
3. Heat up a nonstick pan on medium heat, and add oil.
4. Add chana dal first and cook for 15 seconds since they take longer to cook. Then follow it up with urad dal, cumin seeds, and mustard seeds. Saute for another 45 seconds or so.
5. Add turmeric and cook for 30 seconds.
6. Now add curry leaves and green chilies. Saute for a minute.
7. Add ginger and garlic. Saute for another minute
8. Now add red onions. Season with salt. Cook for 3-5 minutes until the onions are golden (not browned).
9. Add tomatoes and season with salt. Stir.
10. Cover and cook on low heat for 4 minutes.
11. Once the tomatoes are cooked down and have a paste-like consistency, add your spices - coriander powder, red chili powder, and cumin powder. Just cook for 15 seconds so the spices don't burn.
12. Add green bell pepper and salt.
13. Stir.
14. Cover and cook for 10-12 minutes on low-medium heat.
15. Add water - this is optional, but I like my capsicum kura slightly runny so I can enjoy it with rice.
16. Cook down for a minute. Add garam masala, stir, and turn off the stove. Let the flavors marry together for 15 minutes before serving.
Variations
There are so many variations to making this dish. A lot of Andhra dishes are made with the exact same spices. I've made several variations of this using chopped zucchini/squash, okra, cauliflower, eggplant, carrots, and many more veggies.
Another variation, you can skip the tomatoes and add the capsicum after the onions cook down slightly. I've made both versions and they're both good, but I prefer this dish with tomatoes.
Lastly, one more variation. I've also added yogurt at the end of this dish and it's so delicious. You wanna make sure you temper the yogurt and do not add it all at once to avoid curdling. Just note, by adding yogurt, this sabzi is no longer vegan.
Serving Suggestions
Most South Indian homes prefer rice over roti as witnessed in my bestie's home. I love Capsicum Kura with plain jasmine white rice or even basmati rice. It also tastes really good with brown basmati rice.
You can also serve Capsicum Kura with roti, but it's much more enjoyable with rice.
FAQ
Yes. This dish is naturally vegan and gluten-free.
Kura translates to curry in Telugu, so Capsicum Kura is essentially Capsicum Curry. This dish can also go by Capsicum Fry.
Being North Indian, I would call this Capsicum Sabzi or Shimla Mirch Sabzi.
Yes. This dish can be made with dry red chilies which is another popular variation instead of using green chilies. You can adjust the red chili powder.
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Capsicum Kura
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon chana dal
- 1 teaspoon urad dal
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 10-12 curry leaves
- 2 green chilies, slit
- 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- ¾ inch piece ginger, chopped
- 1 cup red onions, chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
- 1 ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- salt
- 3 large green bell peppers, chopped
- ½ cup water
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
Instructions
- Chop ginger, garlic, onions, tomatoes, and green bell peppers. Slice green chilies.
- Set aside curry leaves and all the seeds/dals (chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds, cumin seeds).
- Heat up a nonstick pan on medium heat, and add oil.
- Add chana dal first and cook for 15 seconds since they take longer to cook. Then follow it up with urad dal, cumin seeds, and mustard seeds. Saute for another 45 seconds or so.
- Add turmeric and cook for 30 seconds.
- Now add curry leaves and green chilies. Saute for a minute.
- Add ginger and garlic. Saute for another minute
- Now add red onions. Season with salt. Cook for 3-5 minutes until the onions are golden (not browned).
- Add tomatoes and season with salt. Stir.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 4 minutes.
- Once the tomatoes are cooked down and have a paste-like consistency, add your spices - coriander powder, red chili powder, and cumin powder. Just cook for 15 seconds so the spices don't burn.
- Add green bell pepper and salt.
- Stir.
- Cover and cook for 10-12 minutes on low-medium heat.
- Add water - this is optional, but I like my capsicum kura slightly runny so I can enjoy it with rice.
- Cook down for a minute. Add garam masala, stir, and turn off the stove. Let the flavors marry together for 15 minutes before serving.
Shilpa says
Our favourite since a while.. love how easy it is and yummy too.. pairs well with rice or roti
Tanya says
Made this for lunch today. Loved the flavors!