Baby Corn Jalfrezi

This Baby Corn Jalfrezi is a tangy, slightly sweet and spicy dish that is easy to prepare and yummy for the palate. Since it has different flavor profiles, this Baby Corn Jalfrezi recipe is perfect for all those times when you want to cook something simple and quickly, but your palate is craving for something fancy. It is vegan too.

About Baby Corn Jalfrezi

Jalfrezi (also called as ‘jhal frezi’) is believed to have been originated in Bengal. Basically it is a spicy semi-dry, stir-fried dish that can be made with vegetables or paneer, bell peppers and aromatics.

Other than this Baby Corn Jalfrezi, other varieties can be made of cottage cheese (paneer), mixed vegetables, chicken, etc. Mostly, the dish is finished with some fresh coriander leaves.

In fact various Jalfrezi preparations are popular and served in many Indian restaurants. So, there’s this Baby Corn Jalfrezi along with which the Paneer Jalfrezi too is very popular across the country. This Baby Corn Jalfrezi recipe is my version.

There is a beautiful melange of flavors in this Baby Corn Jalfrezi that come from the spicy, tangy and slightly sweet tones of the dish. The vinegar brings in that extra zing. The bright orange color of the dish not only looks pleasing to the eyes, but is appealing to the taste buds as well.

Nothing comes close to this Baby Corn Jalfrezi when we talk of a dish which is super simple to make, yet is restaurant style. Here, it is just stir-frying of the baby corn, onion and capsicum with dried red chilies and spices, and then slow cooking all of this in the tomato puree.

Not wanting to make it with baby corn? No problem. You can use paneer or tofu in this recipe. Even red and yellow bell peppers or a mix of all the three peppers taste really well in this dish and makes it pretty to look at too.

The best way to savor this Baby Corn Jalfrezi is to pair it with naan, paratha, roti, steamed rice or a pulao of your choice.

How to make Baby Corn Jalfrezi

Prep Baby Corn

1. Rinse 200 to 250 grams baby corn a couple of times in running water.

2. Slice each baby corn vertically into 4 pieces.

3. Thinly slice 1 medium-sized capsicum (green bell pepper) and 1 medium-sized onion. Measure and keep all the ingredients ready.

Sauté Aromatics

4. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in kadai, wok or pan.

5. Add thinly sliced onions.

6. Sauté stirring often till they become translucent on a low to medium-low heat.

7. Add the 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste. You can also crush to a fine paste, 2 small to medium garlic cloves and 1 inch ginger in a mortar-pestle.

8. Sauté for a few seconds till the raw aroma of both ginger and garlic goes away.

9. Add 2 Kashmiri dried red chilies or byadagi chilies (seeds removed) and sauté for 10 to 12 seconds on a low heat.

Cook Baby Corn and Capsicum

10. Now, add thinly sliced capsicum (green bell pepper).

11. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes.

12. Add the baby corn and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes.

Make Baby Corn Jalfrezi

13. Now, add 1 cup tomato puree. Here I have used homemade Tomato Puree.

14. Stir to combine evenly.

15. Add ½ teaspoon red chili powder, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder and ¼ to ½ teaspoon garam masala powder.

16. Mix well.

17. Also, add 1 to 1.5 teaspoons sugar and salt as required.

18. Cook the baby corn in the tomato puree for 10 to 12 minutes.

19. If the liquids dry up, add ¼ or ½ cup water and continue to cook.

20. When the curry becomes semi-dry and the baby corn is tender and cooked well, add ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar.

21. Stir and mix well.

22. Garnish with some coriander leaves.

23. Serve the Baby Corn Jalfrezi with steamed rice, Peas Pulao, Ghee Rice or Roti, Paratha or Naan.

This Baby Corn Jalfrezi post from the archives first published in June 2013 has been republished and updated on 8 May 2022.