This recipe I found on Spice Up the Curry for capsicum curry is delicious! I wish I had made a double recipe because today at work I was wishing I had leftovers 🙂

I am usually skeptical of grinding the onions, garlic and ginger first because it seems to take more oil, but I stuck to the recipe and I was really happy I did! Ground onions take longer to cook than chopped onions, but the flavor profile is different–it has a brighter flavor and is perfect for this recipe.

Good canned crushed tomatoes can really work wonders in a recipe. They are so, for lack of a better word, tomatoey!

1 onion chopped
1 1/2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
1/2 inch piece ginger peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves or 2 Trader Joe’s frozen garlic cubes
1-2 green chilis
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 big green bell pepper chopped
1 tablespoon more olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon toasted cashews
1 tablespoon toasted peanuts
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
Salt
1/2 – 1 cup water

1. Grind the onion, tomatoes, ginger, garlic and green chilis in a grinder or food processor.
2. Heat the 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a saute pan and cook the bell pepper until tender, then remove from the pan.
3. Heat the rest of the oil and add the cumin seeds. Once they are browned, add the onion/tomato mixture. Cook over medium heat stirring pretty often until the raw smell goes away.  I found that this took quite a while, longer than if the onions were chopped! You can close the lid to speed this up a little and keep the stove from getting so messy. The onion/tomato mixture does splash out some.
4. Meanwhile grind the cashews and peanuts (I used a coffee grinder). If they weren’t toasted, toast them first, let cool, then grind.
5. Once the onion and tomato mixture has lost the raw smell, add the cashews, peanuts, chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and salt, and cook for a few minutes. Add enough water to make a nice gravy. The amount you need will depend on how much you covered the onions/tomatoes and how much liquid evaporated. Add the bell pepper and water and cook for a few more minutes.