Majida Rashid
Toss them and turn them into salads or stuff them with rice and ground meat, capsicums — also known as bell peppers — add flavor, texture, and color into to a dish. Columbus mistook them for red chili peppers when Caribbean Indians served him a dish containing these peppers; hence the name. Originally from tropical America and Caribbean, these peppers come in a variety of beautiful colors such as yellow, red, green, orange, and even purple.
Other than having the name pepper, capsicums are not piquant like the chili peppers. Unlike jalapeños peppers, cayenne, and other chili peppers, bell peppers do not secrete much of capsaicin, the chemical that burns your mouth, which is the precise reason they are at the bottom of the Scoville Heat Unit (SHU) scale. SHU depicts the amount of capsaicin present in a pepper.
The green variety is by far the most common and less expensive. They are harvested before they change their color. In some countries the price difference between green and other colored peppers is not that much, but in Houston it is usually double. Bell peppers can be bought in tins or bottles, though I prefer to use the fresh ones as they taste better. They are low in calories and rich in vitamins A and C, and even carotenoids. The latter has anti-inflammatory effect on our body.
Buy the ones that are firm, shiny and bright in color with taut skin. Like any other vegetables they should be used within a few days of purchase; otherwise wilting will destroy the nutrients. A few diced red and yellow peppers will add sunshine to any green salad. Capsicums filled with meat, rice and onion are called dolma. No Middle Eastern restaurant’s menu would be complete without dolmas.
Pieces of capsicum of different colors together with onions interspersed between the meat make a shish kebab skewer very appetizing. Cut them into thin strips and stir-fry them with meat and other vegetables and within very little time a delectable dish could be prepared. Here is something that takes very little time to cook but it’s very satisfying.
Stir-fried Chicken Capsicum
2 whole large chicken legs, without bones
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 small green capsicum
1 red capsicum
1 medium onion
1 small carrot
6 tablespoons cooking or sesame oil
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 – 1/2 cup of oyster sauce
2 tablespoons mild chili sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
Instructions
Cut the chicken into approximately 1-inch long strips and place them in a bowl.
Add the soy sauce and the cornstarch.
Mix well and leave aside to marinate.
Meanwhile, halve the capsicums and remove and discard the seeds.
Cut each half into thin strips.
Alternatively, cut each half into three thick strips and slice each strip into three pieces.
Peel and halve the onion.
Divide each half into three sections.
Cut each section in the middle so there are twelve small mounds of onions.
Peel the carrot and cut it into thin diagonal slices.
Heat four tablespoons of oil in a wok.
Add the ginger and fry for a minute over low heat.
Give a stir to the chicken once.
Add it to the ginger and fry until it changes color.
Transfer it onto a dish.
Heat the remaining oil and fry carrot for a minute.
Stir in the capsicum, onions and garlic.
Mix together the vinegar and oyster sauce and chili sauce.
Pour over the vegetables.
Cook, stirring continuously, for two minutes.
Add the chicken to the wok and cook, uncovered, for further five minutes or until the vegetables are tender but crispy.
Place it in a serving dish.
Serve immediately with white boiled rice.
Serves 2-3.
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Foodie Majida Rashid lives in Texas. Food and cooking are her passion. Her presentation about her love of food can be viewed on USA Today’s network: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=l0xi566VSPo – We Spread Love Through Food. @Frontiers_Of_Flavor. Her philosophical writing can be read at apakistaniwomansjourney.wordpress.com.
