Bharli Mirchi

Name: Bharli Mirchi
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Maharashtra)
Ingredients: 12 large mild green chillies (Bajji variety / Anaheim — NOT hot bird's-eye; they should be stuffable) OR 3 medium green capsicums, quartered lengthwise; 2 tbsp oil; 1 tsp mustard seeds; 8 curry leaves; 1 medium onion (80 g), finely chopped; 1 medium tomato (80 g), chopped; 4 tbsp roasted peanuts, coarsely crushed; 2 tbsp white sesame seeds, dry-roasted; 1 tbsp dry coconut (kopra), grated and dry-roasted golden; 1.5 tsp goda masala; 1 tsp red chilli powder; 1 tsp coriander powder; 1 tsp jaggery powder; ½ tsp tamarind paste (thick); ½ tsp salt; 2 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped; 1 tsp oil (to bind stuffing); 1 tsp tamarind paste mixed with 200 ml water; 1 tsp jaggery powder; ½ tsp red chilli powder; Salt to taste; Use the mildest, largest green chillies available — stuffing hot chillies makes this dish uneatable for most; The fried stuffing that falls into the gravy during braising enriches the sauce — do not try to prevent this; Jaggery must balance the tamarind — keep adjusting small amounts of each until balance is achieved

🌱 Vegan🌾 Gluten-free📊 Medium

Large, mild green chillies or capsicums stuffed with a peanut-sesame-goda masala filling and braised in a thin tamarind-jaggery gravy until tender. A beloved home dinner dish across Maharashtra — the stuffed chillies make it visually dramatic, the filling sweet-sour-spicy.

⏱️25 minPrep

🔥30 minCook

🕒55 minTotal

🍽️4Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Bharli Mirchi

Make stuffing (No heat): Combine all stuffing ingredients — crushed peanuts, sesame, roasted coconut, goda masala, chilli powder, coriander powder, jaggery, tamarind paste, salt, coriander and oil. Mix until it holds together when pressed. Taste: it should be robustly sweet-sour-spicy. Adjust jaggery or tamarind as needed.
Prepare and stuff chillies (No heat): Cut a long vertical slit in each chilli, leaving it attached at stem and tip. Remove seeds carefully if you want less heat. Using a small spoon, pack stuffing tightly into each chilli — press firmly. Set aside.
Fry the stuffed chillies (Heat: medium): Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wide kadai. Gently place stuffed chillies in a single layer. Pan-fry on medium heat for 4–5 minutes, rolling carefully, until chillies are lightly charred and blistered all over and slightly softened. The stuffing may ooze out slightly — this enriches the gravy. Remove chillies carefully.
Make the gravy (Heat: medium): In the same pan with the residual oil, add mustard seeds — crackle. Add curry leaves. Add chopped onion — fry 6 minutes until golden. Add tomato — cook 3 minutes mashing. Add tamarind water, jaggery, chilli powder and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook 5 minutes until gravy is thin, tangy, and slightly sweet.
Braise the chillies (Heat: medium-low): Return the pan-fried stuffed chillies to the gravy. Spoon gravy over them. Cover and cook on medium-low for 10–12 minutes, turning once carefully at the halfway mark, until chillies are completely tender and the stuffing has melded with the gravy.
Serve: Plate 2–3 stuffed chillies per person with gravy spooned over. Serve with bhakri or rotis — the combination of soft chilli, nutty filling and tangy gravy is outstanding.

📖 Cultural notes

|---|---|---|---|---| | 310 kcal | 8 g | 24 g | 21 g | 5 g | Bharli mirchi is served at Diwali family dinners and winter celebrations across Maharashtra when large, fresh green chillies are available. The dish showcases Maharashtra's signature flavour balance of goad-ambat-tikhat (sweet-sour-spicy) that defines so much of the state's cooking. Every family adjusts the stuffing to their own preference — some add potato, some add more sesame. ---

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