Capsicum Paruppusili

Go to any traditional celebration like a wedding or an upanayanam in Chennai - you are bound to be greeted by the famous paruppusili, staring at you from the vaazha yelai (banana leaf). Paruppusili is basically a dry curry which is an amazing combination of lentils and vegetable tossed together with minimum tempering. A prominent hing signature adds a brilliant aroma to this dish. This paruppusili is mostly had with Mor Kuzhambu (the tamilian kadhi) or venthiya kuzhambu (a non-dal tamarind based gravy).

The procedure to make paruppusili is slightly longer than most south indian dry curries. But believe me, the effort would definitely be worth it. The most common vegetable used in paruppusilis is beans. But, any vegetable would actually go well with the legumes. This recipe is from my mother. I just substituted beans with capsicum.

Ingredients (serves 2 – 3)

• Toor dal: ½ cup
• Red chillies (long): 3
• Capsicum (deseeded and chopped): 1 and a half cups
• Oil: 4 – 5 tbsp
• For the tempering:
• Mustard: 1 tsp
• Urad dal: ¾ tsp
• Curry leaves: 15 – 20
• Hing: ½ tsp

Method:

•Wash and clean the toor dal. Soak for a minimum of 2 – 3 hours along with the red chillies
•Drain all the water. In a mixie, make a coarse dry mixture (without water) of the dal and the red chillies adding the required salt
•Now, steam them in the cooker for about ten minutes. I use idli plates to do it. But, it is upto you to use them or not
•Once steamed, let them cool. Crumble them into pieces. Now, run it in the mixie for exactly one whip. This removes all the lumps in the steamed mixture
•Now, a kadai
•Add about 1 – 2 tbsp of oil and fry the vegetable very well. Add a little salt so that it cooks faster. Once it is done, keep aside
•Now in the same kadai, add the remaining oil
•Finish off with tempering and add the dal mixture and fry very well. This requires tossing and turning of the dal constantly on medium flame
•Once this is done, add the cooked vegetable
•Toss it repeatedly so that the two blend well
•Hing should be prominent. So, adjust it to the point that it casually dominates the dish but not to the point of making the curry bitter. Adjust salt also
•Once you feel the two are blended, switch off the stove
•Serve with hot rice and ghee
•Done!

Capsicum paruppusili is my contribution to ‘My Legume Love Affair – 17’, created by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook and hosted by Sra