Balaka
Ingredients:
50 Green Chillies
3 cups sour Buttermilk
4 tsp Salt
Wash and dry the chilis, then make a slit up two sides, half the length of the chili. Keep the chili intact, and don't open the slits up. In a bowl, mix together the buttermilk and salt. Submerge the chilis in the buttermilk bath for three full days, covering with cheesecloth, and stir a few times each day. When done, pluck the chilis out of the bath, reserving the liquid, and lay the chilis out on racks or trays to dry in the hot sun. Leave them under the sun all day, then return them to the buttermilk bath.
Repeat this process for about three days, then remove the chilis, discard the buttermilk mixture, and let the chilis sun dry for another four or five days, until all the moisture is gone and they are completely dried. If you don't have hot sun, you can dry them on the lowest possible oven temperature. This may cause them to be slightly sweeter, as the sugars carmelize at higher heats. (Lower heat, like 120 degrees F., cures the chilis much better than the lowest oven settings.)
Store the dried chilis in an airtight container and keep in a cool, dark place. They'll last for at least a year. To use them, fry in a little ghee until golden brown then toss into rice or sabjis.
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