Matar ka Nimona
An easy to prepare UP style matar ka nimona recipe. Its a popular recipe which is prepared in most households in Uttar Pradesh.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
to be ground
- 1 medium onion, chopped, 75 grams or ½ cup chopped onions
- ½ teaspoon chopped ginger, or ½ inch ginger, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
- 2 green chilies, chopped
- 1 cup fresh green peas, 150 grams
other ingredients
- 2 tablespoons mustard oil
- 1 medium potato, or 100 grams or ¾ cup chopped potato cubes
- 1 tej patta (indian bay leaf)
- 3 cloves
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 medium tomato, finely chopped or 5 grams or ⅓ cup finely chopped tomatoes
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- 3 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
- 1.5 to 2 cups water or add as required
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
- 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
Instructions
preparing onion paste
- In a grinder or blender jar, take ½ cup chopped onions, ½ teaspoon chopped ginger , 1 teaspoon chopped garlic and 2 green chilies (chopped).
- Blend to a semi fine or smooth paste without adding any water. Remove the onion paste and keep aside.
- In the same grinder jar, add 1 cup matar (green peas). Grind to a coarse paste. Do not add any water while grinding. Keep aside.
sautéing potatoes
- Take 2 tablespoons mustard oil in a pan and heat till it begins to smoke. Lower the flame and add ¾ cup chopped potato cubes.
- Begin to saute the potatoes on a low to medium flame. Saute till the potatoes are golden. Remove on kitchen paper towels. Keep aside.
making matar ka nimona
- In the same pan, add 1 tej patta, 3 cloves and ½ teaspoon cumin seeds. Let the spices crackle and splutter.
- Now add the ground onion paste. Mix well and begin to saute stirring often.
- Saute till you see oil releasing from the sides and the paste becomes lumpy and starts gathering around itself.
- Now add ⅓ cup finely chopped tomatoes. Mix well and begin to saute the tomatoes.
- Saute till the tomatoes soften and become mushy.
- Then add ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, ½ teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder, ½ teaspoon coriander powder and a pinch of asafoetida (hing).
- Mix the spice powders very well with the onion-tomato mixture.
- Now add the coarsely ground fresh peas.
- Mix the peas with the rest of the onion-tomato masala. Stirring often saute for 2 minutes.
- Then add 3 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves. Mix again.
- Add 1.5 to 2 cups water. You can add less or more water as required.
- Season with salt. Mix very well.
- Cover the pan with a lid and simmer till the green peas are cooked. This takes about 10 to 11 minutes on a low to medium flame.
- In between do check and stir. If the water looks less, you can add some more water.
- If planning to serve matar ka nimona with chapatis, you can add less water. If planning to serve with rice, you can add slightly more water.
- Once the gravy is done, you will see oil floating on top and the matar will be cooked.
- Now add the fried potatoes and ¼ to ½ teaspoon garam masala powder. Mix very well and cook for a minute.
- Lastly add 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves. Mix well.
- Serve matar nimona hot with rotis, pooris or steamed rice.
- While serving you can garnish with some coriander leaves. Some lemon wedges can also be served with matar ka nimona.