Bhuna Onions

Bhuna Onions is a traditional Indian recipe for a classic base of Indian-spiced fried onions coloured with red bell pepper, turmeric that can be used as a tomatoless curry base and can be served as an accompaniment. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Indian version of: Bhuna Onions.

prep time

5 minutes

cook time

15 minutes

Total Time:

20 minutes

Makes:

1 batch

Rating:

Tags : BIR Curries Sauce Recipes Spice Recipes Indian Recipes

Most base sauces for curries are, in reality, Tomato and Onion Bhuna sauces. But sometimes you need the cooked (actually fried) onions without the tomatoes. This is bhuna onions (basically Indian-spiced fried onions coloured with turmeric). Here is the recipe for preparing bhuna onions just as your local curry house would do them.

Ingredients:

125ml (1/2 Cup) Vegetable Oil
5 Onions peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper diced
1 tbsp Garlic and Ginger paste
1 1/2 tsp ground Turmeric
1 1/2 tsp Shahi Jeera (black cumin seeds)
1/4 cup Water
2 tsp Salt

Method:

Place a pan on medium heat. Once hot pour in the oil. Once the oil is hot add the garlic-ginger paste and Shahi jeera and cook until rawness is taken out (about 3 minutes).

Add the water, salt and turmeric and stir to combine. Bring back to temperature then add the onions and red bell pepper, stirring well to combine.

Place lid on the pan and continue cooking for 5 minutes. At this point stir the mixture well, making sure the onions on the bottom of the pan come to the top. Repeat this process every 5 minutes for a total of 15 minutes cooking time.

Check onions are cooked (ie translucent) but not quite fully tender. At this point they are done and you can use them straight away or allow to cool down, then transfer to the refrigerator to store for future use