Jump to the Mirch Pasanday Recipe
Today I am sad. That's a terrible opening line isn't it? It's the wet weather, the kid that I love to bits but is so so clingy, the rooms that don't stay clean, the blog pictures that aren't doing justice to the food, the sleep I need to catch up on...and the list goes on.
What am I doing writing a blog post then you ask?
Well, when I am sad and tired and overall cranky I want my mamas food, the flavourful easy to make food I grew up eating and these mirch pasanday hit the spot. The premise is so simple, slow cook beef fillets and onions, stuff some green chillies, lightly fry'em and mix it all in. But the end result...it is almost beautiful in how it tastes. Since there is no actual chilli powder in this dish my kids are happy to eat the meat which makes this a total win. I mean what cranky mama wants to cook two meals at one time?
The green chillies I use for these mirch pasanday are the Pakistani kind that I seem to be able to easily find in stores in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). You can use anything you are comfortable with stuffing, except jalapenos. With their thicker skin they are harder to work with for this purpose. I have even done this dish with the intensely fiery scotch bonnets, but may I suggest that if you use them that you scrape the seeds out first!
Looking for more classic Pakistani beef dishes that give you warm hug feels? Check these out!
Mirch Pasanday
Ingredients
- 1 lb beef pasanday/
- 2 medium sized onions
- ½ tsp salt
stuffed chillies
- 10-12 green chillies
- 2.5 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp cumin powder
- 1 tbsp coriander powder
- ¾ tsp turmeric powder
- 1.5 tsp salt
- neutral vegetable oil for cooking
- half a lemon
Instructions
- Cut your beef fillet into wide strips - 2-3 inches wide.
- Roughly chop onions
- Put beef, onions, and salt in a heavy pot or a pressure cooker (follow manufacturer directions), add 2.5 cups hot water, mix well and cook covered till tender.
- Add more water if the meat starts to stick.
- Once the meat is tender then crank up the heat to dry up the water.
- While the meat is cooking combine all the spices and dry roast them in a frying pan on medium heat till fragrant.
- Use a small knife to slit the side of the chillies and a small spoon to fill the chillies, reserve the leftover spice mix for later
- Heat ¼ cup oil in a frying pan and cook the chillies stirring occasionally till they get tender and blistery.
- Remove the chillies with a slotted spoon, pour the hot oil over the pasandas and add in half of what's left of your spice mix.
- Cook on medium high heat for 5 minutes. The pasandas will darken and start to look cooked. Taste and adjust seasoning with more spice mix if needed.
- Add the stuffed chillies and gently mix them in. Cook on low heat for 5 minutes.
- Squeeze lemon juice over and eat with some naan or roti. If you have extra spice mix leftover you can save it to stuff chilies another time or use it for cooking any curry.
Notes
This looks sooooo good!!!! I thought the mirchis were jalapenos from the picture. I've never seen mirchis this big, only seen thai chillies and the longer kind (but they aren't as wide as yours). Pinning this to try soon!
Sarah, this looks great. We don't get beef at home since the husband doesn't eat it, but I would love to try it. And as for bad days- we all have our share, just hang in there- it always gets better.
Thanks so much for your kind words and support Shumaila! It means a lot since I am a long time fan of your blog!
Pasanday can cure any kind of mood.
so true!
I have to admit, I've been shamelessly cooking off this blog for a while now but have been too lazy to post a review. This recipe caught my eye a few times, but I always looked it over and thought it looked too simple and straightforward and didn't have that much in it, so was probably bland and not worth it. But boy was I wrong! This was AMAZING! Don't be fooled by how easy it is, it is unbelievable! My husband (who is extremely fussy when it comes to my cooking) absolutely loved it and so did I! Will definitely be saving this and making this regularly now.
Thank you Sarah for saving my life!!! Your recipes are so easy to follow and so yummy, its a good change from my typical everyday recipes!
lots of love xxx
man you just know how to make my day/month/year - thank you so so much for giving this a shot and i am THRILLED to bits that you tried it and liked it!!! sending SO much love your way!
Hello! Just wanted to know which cut of beef should one use for this recipe? Thanks!
Hi Sara! In Pakistan we asked for undercut which is basically tenderloin! It works with tougher cuts too though since you cook it low and slow
Hi Sara! This recipe looks amazing . I’m a huge fan of your blog and follow many recipes so JazakAllah khair. What meat should I get and from where? I’m also in Canada ❤️
Hi Scidra!!! thank you so much for your kind words! My butcher usually does these with me, but otherwise you can ask for tenderloin! Hope you like it!