Cheesy Biryani Stuffed Mirchi Bajji (Pepper Fritters)

Take your favorite pepper, stuff it with a filling and batter fry it. Yum! That is Mirchi Bajji or Pepper Fritter. A favorite appetizer or anytime snack in India. The pepper you choose can be the hottest one or the mild kind. It is totally your preference. The same applies to the filling. It can be vegetarian or non-vegetarian. Or you can go with dairy and stuff it with cheese to your heart’s content. Just do not overstuff. Otherwise you will end up with cheese on the outside of the bajji than inside. You can serve it on its own or with ketchup and coconut chutney.

In this recipe I chose to make Mirchi Bajji with Shishito, the Korean Peppers. Little did I consider its hotness. Let us just say it altered my voice for a few minutes until I gobbled some chocolate and yogurt. So do be careful choosing peppers for this bajji. If you choose peppers whose heat you can tolerate, these bajjis will be the most delightful things to eat along with a cup of hot masala chai. That being said let us take a look at the recipe.

Ingredients

Cheese mixed into rice

Stuff the peppers

Make the batter

Heat the oil        

Dip pepper in batter

Place in oil

Fry until all sides are browned

Remove from oil

Ingredients:

Peppers 6 to 10, depending on size

Besan (chickpea flour) 1 to 1.5 cups

Chaat masala 1/8^th tsp optional

Turmeric powder 1/8^th tsp

Ajwain 1/8^th tsp (carom seeds)

Chilli powder, depending on the heat of peppers

Salt to taste

Biryani 1 cup, just rice

Smoked Cheddar ¼ cup, shredded or chopped (or use your favorite cheese)

Oil for deep frying

Wash and dry the peppers. Make a slit lengthwise on the pepper just on one side. Deseed if you like. Please protect your hand by wearing gloves if you decide to deseed them.

Prepare the stuffing by mixing the cheese into the rice. Take tablespoons of this mixture and stuff them into the cavity you created in the peppers. Don’t overstuff them.

Pour about two inches of oil into a deep pan and start heating it. Use medium heat. While that is getting on add all the spices and salt to the besan and mix. Now add just enough water to the besan and make a smooth, lump-free thick batter.

Check the oil’s heat by dropping a tiny dollop of the batter into it. If it floats to the top within five seconds the oil is ready for bajjis. Carefully place a stuffed pepper into the batter, the slit side up. Spoon batter over the pepper. When it is fully covered with batter, lift it gently and place it in the oil. Fry until all sides of the pepper is browned.

Serve

For a video version of this recipe go to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2etJwI802U&t=317s