In the original recipe, we roast the whole Eggplant on the fire and then peel the skin, mash it and cook it in spices…the taste of the roasted eggplant is awesome and you can replicate it here by roasting in the BBQ grill (but we have to warn you, it can be a messy affair).
Not everyone has a grill and not a lot of people want to deal with the mess so we have modified it so you can make it in the oven, compromise little on the taste and still look pretty once you are done cooking….
Ingredients:
Eggplant – 1lb (aprox)
Onions – 1 med., finely chopped in a food processor
Tomatoes – 4 med, finely chopped
Turmeric (Haldi) – ½ tsp
Oil – 2 tbsps
Salt – to taste
Frozen peas – 1/2 cup
Ginger – 1tsp, finely chopped
Garlic – 1 tsp, finely chopped
Asofoetida (Hing) – 1 pinch
Coriander powder (Dhaniya) – 2 tsps
Cumin powder (Jeera) – 1 tsp
Garam Masala – 1tsp
Red Chili Powder – to taste
Green Chilies – to taste, finely chopped
Cilantro – 5 sprigs, finely chopped, for garnishing
Method:
- Pre-heat the oven at 400 degrees, rub a little oil on the Eggplant, put it in a oven-proof dish and cook for 1 hour.
- Once that is done, take Eggplant out, let it cool a little and then peel off the skin (it will come off very easily). Cut cubes of the flesh and keep aside.
- Heat rest of the Oil in a non-stick pan on Medium-to-High heat.
- After the Oil gets hot, add Asofoetida, Turmeric and Onions (in that order).
- Give it a good stir and let it cook till the onions turn translucent.
- Add the Ginger and Garlic and let it cook till the onions start turning golden.
- Add the Tomatoes and cook till the oil separates from the mixture…this will take a little while. Don’t forget to keep stirring, tomatoes tend to burn fast.
- Add Garam Masala, Cumin powder, Coriander Powder, Red Chili Powder and the Green Chilies. Mix
- Add the Eggplant cubes and mix. While mixing, the cubes will fall apart and become one big mixture. This is OK.
- Add the Peas and Salt, mix and cover the wok, reduce to Medium flame and let it cook.
- Once it starts boiling and the spices have all blended in well with the Eggplant and Peas, it is ready.
- Garnish with Fresh Cilantro and serve hot with Naans, Chapatis, Paranthas..
- Serves 4-6
Tips:
- Use a 1 or 2” deep dish for baking; the Eggplant tends to let go of a lot of juice, which can be thrown away.
- Garam Masala is available at any Indian grocery store or any whole foods store.
Watch and learn…
