COLOURFUL CAPSICUM
With its vibrant shades of red, yellow and green, the humble capsicum is not only truly versatile but also extremely tasty and nutritious. Capsicums, also best known as bell peppers or traffic light peppers, are vegetables belonging to the chilli family although they lack any peppery flavour to them. They are available in four different colours: green, yellow, orange and red. Shimla Mirch, as it is referred to in Indian cookery, is a housewife’s favourite. That’s because this veggie works perfectly in sandwiches or wraps, IndianChinese recipes, pizzas, pulaos and biryanis too. As a subzi it lends itself to dry and gravy dishes, so you can try something new and never run out of new and exciting ways of cooking this pepper.
The various coloured capsicums all come from the same plant, but differ in their level of maturity. Most capsicums turn red on ripening but you also get yellow and orange coloured ones. As the fruit ripens, it loses its sharpness, bitterness and becomes sweeter and nutritious. They just don’t add flavour to the recipe but are also used for their colour.
“Before selecting a capsicum you need to figure out in which dish the capsicum is to be used, if it’s going to be eaten raw in a salad or as an accompaniment, then preferably go for the coloured peppers as they are sweeter and more fruity in taste,” says Chef Jerson Fernandes, Executive Chef Hotel Sea Princess Hotel, Mumbai.
If it has to be cooked in a dish like the Aloo capsicum, then choose the green (male) variety as it has less seeds and slightly more bitter in flavour than the female capsicum which has more seeds.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF CAPSICUM
Capsicums are brimming with health benefits including relief from stomach problems, muscle spasms, headaches, peptic ulcers, menopausal problems and cardiovascular issues. “Try eating them for their anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, and for alleviating arthritic pain. Capsicum also helps with psoriasis and skin afflictions,” says Mumbaibased nutritionist Shweta Tewari.
TRY COOKING WITH CAPSICUM AS IT IS BURSTING WITH FLAVOUR AND IS A NUTRITIONAL POWERHOUSE