Sweet Pepper Poppers – Sweet pepper appetizer with a Kolhapuri twist

Stuffed Sweet Pepper is one of my favorite appetizers of all time. The sweetness of tiny sweet peppers infused with the spicy paneer stuffing is an amazing combination. Ideal for cold and rainy evenings. It is very filling and also very rich – thanks to the paneer stuffing. And it tastes amazing.

Making this sweet pepper dish more interesting is the introduction of Kolhapuri twist. But first, let me explain what Kolhapuri means.

In India, in the state of Maharashtra, there is a city named Kolhapur. Kolhapur is full of rich history and heritage. Part of this rich heritage is the Kolhapuri Masala. It is the most aromatic masala you’ll ever find. It contains more than 20 spices. You can get Kolhapuri masala at your nearest Indian store or on Amazon.com.

I hope this dish becomes your guilty pleasure just as it is mine. Another fine addition to my collection of appetizers that also includes Indian Cone-y Delights, Desi Noodle Cups, and Protein Cigars among many others.

For vegans, you can enjoy the sweet peppers by substituting paneer with mashed potato or tofu and follow the same recipe.

So try this colorful Pepper Popper appetizer and let me know if this was your tummy to heart moment …

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Ingredients

• 25 – 30 Mini bell peppers (sweet peppers)

• 220g Paneer (Indian cottage cheese) – grated
  or paneer made from 5 cups whole milk

• 2 tbsp milk powder

• 185g or 2 medium size onion – finely chopped

• 1/2 tsp garlic paste

• 1/4 cup cilantro (coriander) – chopped

• 3 tbsp salted butter

• 1/4 tsp turmeric

• 1 1/4 tsp red chilli powder

• 1 1/4 tsp Kolhapuri masala powder or 1 tsp garam masala powder

• 3/4 tsp salt

• 2 tsp oil

• 1/8 tsp or 2 pinch asafetida (hing)

• 100g or 1 medium size tomato – finely chopped

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Directions

• Preparing the stuffing for the peppers
• In a saucepan, on medium flame, pour 2 Tsp of oil. Heat it.
• Once oil is properly heated, add salted butter
• Once the butter is properly melted, add asafetida (hing) and finely chopped onions. Sauté the onions till it becomes translucent or slightly brown
• Next add finely chopped tomatoes and sauté till they become soggy (about 3-4 minutes on medium flame)
  
• Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and Kolhapuri masala powder and stir it well
• Next add garlic paste and mix it
• Now add milk powder and grated paneer with salt. Mix the ingredients properly and lightly sauté for a minute.
• Cover the pan with a lid and cook paneer for about 5 minutes.
• Add cilantro and mix it well.
• Turn off the heat and let the paneer cool.
• Getting the poppers ready …
• Cut the top part of the pepper and remove all the seeds from inside.
• Once paneer is cool enough stuff it in the pepper, garnish and serve.
• Note : If you want you can bake the peppers in a greased baking tray by brushing little oil on the pepper then sprinkle little salt on the top.
• Pre-heat the oven for 5-10 minutes at 370^o Fahrenheit (190^o Celsius). Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
• Remove the tray when done. Your poppers are ready to be served. Place them on a plate and serve with tamarind-date chutney or tomato ketchup based on your preference.
  

NOTES:

• You can adjust the quantity of spice as per your taste.
• Always use little oil in the pan before adding butter or Ghee (clarified butter) as oil prevents the butter from burning fast.
• The oil from paneer is used for baking so that the taste of the paneer masala can get infused in the pepper. And when baking the aroma is strong.
• If you do not want to use the oil in the pan to grease the baking tray then reduce the butter quantity by 10g.
• For Vegans – substitute grated paneer with mashed potatoes or tofu.
• If you like the crunchiness of sweet pepper, you can consume it raw with just the stuffing. No need to bake if you don’t want to.

Pepper Poppers

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by Amruta Course: Appetizer, SnacksCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

5

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Baking time

5

minutes

Calories

275.3

kcal

This is one of my favorite appetizers of all time. The sweetness of tiny sweet peppers infused with the spicy paneer stuffing is an amazing combination. Ideal for cold and rainy evenings. It’s very filling and it is also very rich – thanks to the paneer stuffing. But it tastes amazing.

Ingredients

• 25 – 30 Mini bell peppers (sweet peppers)

• 220 g Cottage Cheese (Paneer) – grated or paneer made from 5 cups whole milk

• 2 tbsp Milk powder

• 185 g or 2 medium size Onion – finely chopped

• 100 g Tomato – finely chopped

• 1/2 tsp Garlic paste

• 1/4 cup Cilantro (Coriander) – chopped

• 3 tbsp Salted Butter

• 1/4 tsp Turmeric

• 1 1/4 tsp Red chilli powder

• 1 1/4 tsp Kolhapuri Masala powder or 1 tsp garam masala powder

• 3/4 tsp Salt

• 2 tsp Oil

• 1/8 tsp Asafetida / Hing

Directions

• Preparing the stuffing for the peppers – 15 mins
• In a saucepan, on medium flame, pour 2 Tsp of oil. Heat it.
• Once oil is properly heated, add salted butter
• Once the butter is properly melted, add asafetida (hing) and finely chopped onions. Sauté the onions till it becomes translucent of slightly brown
• Next add finely chopped tomatoes and sauté till they become soft (about 3-4 minutes on medium flame)
• Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and Kolhapuri masala powder and stir it well for a minute
• Next add garlic paste and mix it
• Now add milk powder and grated paneer with salt. Mix the ingredients properly and lightly sauté for a minute.
• Cover the pan with a lid and cook paneer for about 5 minutes.
• Add cilantro and mix it well.
• Turn off the heat and let the paneer cool.
• Getting the Poppers ready – 5-10 mins
• Cut the top part of the pepper and remove all the seeds from inside.
• Once paneer is cool enough stuff it in the pepper, garnish with coriander and serve.
• Note : If you want you can also bake the peppers in a greased baking tray by brushing little oil on the pepper then sprinkle little salt on the top.
• Pre-heat the oven for 5-10 minutes at 370^o Fahrenheit (190^o Celsius). Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 5-7 minutes.
• Remove the tray when done. Your poppers are ready to be served. Place them on a plate and serve with tamarind-date chutney or tomato ketchup based on your preference.

Recipe Video

Notes

• You can adjust the quantity of spice as per your taste.
• Always use little oil in the pan before adding butter or Ghee (clarified butter) as oil prevents the butter from burning fast.
• The oil from paneer is used for baking so that the taste of the paneer masala can get infused in the pepper. And when baking the aroma is strong.
• If you do not want to use the oil in the pan to grease the baking tray then reduce the butter quantity by 10g.
• For Vegans – substitute grated paneer with mashed potatoes.
• If you like the crunchiness of sweet pepper, you can consume it raw with just the stuffing. No need to bake if you don’t want to.

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Nutrition Value

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