In more ways than one, there has never been a summer quite like this one. I have cooked with more seasonal ingredients than ever, made friends with local farmers, bought out almost their entire harvest and explored my creative boundaries to use up the glorious produce in new ways.
Now that the abundance of eggplant and tomatoes is tapering off, it is time for peppers — Hatch, Aleppo, pepperoncini, shishito and more. At my restaurant, the mild yet delicious shishito has topped a pizza; turned into relish on a burger; grilled and topped with a masala; or battered in chickpea flour to make a pakora.
At home, a simpler approach is to roast the peppers with paneer and mango to make for a light but satisfying dish.
serves 4
ingredients
1 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
4 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 small red onion, minced (roughly 1 cup)
15 to 20 kari (curry) leaves
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound shishito peppers
2 to 3 medium tomatoes, chopped (roughly 2 cups)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces paneer
1 tablespoon amchur (ground dried mango)
1/2 mango, sliced
instructions
Pre-heat oven to 450°F.
In an oven-safe skillet, heat the ghee and pop the coriander seeds — be careful not to burn them as they are quite delicate. Almost immediately add the minced onions and stir-fry on medium heat until they are soft and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
Add the kari leaves, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, and black pepper. Cook on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the heat off.
Slice the paneer, place it on top and sprinkle the amchur over the entire pan. Place the sliced mango on top and roast the entire pan in the oven for 4 to 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
notes & variations
Paneer is found at most Indian grocers, or make your own.
Rotis or rice with a side of plain whole-milk yogurt make a good accompaniment.
Kari leaves are a small leaf native to India with pine-like fragrance — they can be found at most Indian grocers. If not available, omit or replace with kaffir lime leaf.
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