Bell Pepper Tomato Masala

DH's cousin and her husband visited us for a month in the summer, when just in time for the busiest time of the year in the farm. Did I say it was great to have them around. Both of are very active people and did a lot of helping around the farm and we harvested far more vegetables than we ever did.

The biggest and fun side benefit of all is that she is also a very good no fantastic cook so we enjoyed some new and creative recipes. In the summer when we were harvesting bell pepper, this recipe was made for a quick dinner. The difference between the homegrown bell peppers and the store bought ones is that the homegrown ones do not have as much moisture so they have a much more concentrated flavor and goes without saying they are much more tastier. We also had home grown jalapenos and tomatoes being harvested at the same time and nothing can compete for taste with that combination of all those fresh vegetables.

I am not someone who eats uncooked bell peppers. They make me gassy. Once they are cooked I have not experienced any adverse effects thankfully. Since bell peppers don't need to be cooked completely adjust the time according to your needs. The time I have is for the bell pepper to be completely cooked but still maintaining a slight crunch.

Here is the recipe in pictures,

Cut the onions, jalapenos and garlic and the tomatoes.
Heat the oil and add in the onion, jalapenos and garlic and saute till the onions are turning brown.
Add in the tomatoes and let them cook. Add in bell peppers and let cook for 4-5 minutes more or till done.

Bell Pepper in Tomato Masala
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 - 20minutes
Ingredients

1. 2 cups of cleaned and chopped into 1 inch pieces
2. 4-5 jalapenos or spicy green chilies, de-seeded and chopped
3. 1 1/2 cups of finely diced tomatoes
4. 2 garlic cloves roughly chopped/ pounded
5. 1 tsp grated ginger (optional)
6. 2 tsp of red chili powder (depending on the heat of the green chilies)
7. 2 tsp oil*
8. salt to taste

Method

1. In a wider mouthed pan add oil and add in the onions and jalapenos, saute till the onions become translucent.
2. Add the garlic and ginger if doing so and saute for a minute.
3. Add in the tomatoes and let them cook till they get mushy and completely broken down. Add salt and chili powder if doing so and mix.
4. Add the chopped bell pepper and in low heat cook for 4-5 minutes**. Turn off the heat.
5. *The amount of oil depends on your preference, a half a tbsp of oil will give a restaurant style shiny but oily gravy.
6. **The amount of cooking time depends on your desired level of cooking for the bell peppers. I prefer a completely cooked but slightly crunchy bell pepper. So check to make sure the peppers don't get mushy.

Serve with soft chapathis or rotis.

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