Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Brinjal Bharta (Eggplant Curry)


Brinjal Bharta
'Eggplant/Aubergine' or 'Brinjal' as it's popularly called in India, is on my list of 'not-so favorite' veggies . It's not that the list is very long-there are just two vegetables (brinjal and potatoes) and again it's not that I will not touch them. I prefer to eat them only in certain dishes:potatoes as chips or in Masala Dosa and brinjal as a bharta, pakora or stuffed.
For the Brinjal bharta, the brinjal is usually first roasted whole over a fire (since we have an electric cooktop here, I had to bake it) . Once roasted,the brinjal pulp is then cooked with chopped onions,tomatoes and garnished with chopped cilantro. The Brinjal bharta goes well with 'phulkas/roti' or with steamed rice and dal.Here are the ingredients for Brinjal Bharta:
Ingredients:
  • Eggplant/brinjal: 1 big
  • Onion: 1 medium, finely chopped
  • Tomatoes: 1-2 ,diced
  • Green chillies: 1-2,slit lengthwise
  • Ginger: 1 tsp, finely chopped
  • Garlic: 4-5, finely chopped
  • Garam masala: 1tsp
  • Cilantro/coriander leaves: 5 tbsp, finely chopped
  • Salt: to taste
  • Oil: 1tsp
Method:
  1. Spread a little oil over the skin of the eggplant/brinjal and roast over an open flame till it gets cooked(or you could bake it in the oven for 20-30mins).
  2. After it cools a bit, remove the skin (the oil applied on the skin makes it easy) and coarsely chop the eggplant pulp. Keep aside.
  3. Heat the oil in a pan,then add the chopped ginger and garlic. Let it fry for about a minute,then add the chopped onions and salt.
  4. Saute till the onions become translucent, then add the slit green chillies, diced tomatoes and garam masala powder. Stir for about 5-6 minutes till the tomatoes are cooked.
  5. Add the pulp of the brinjal and cook for another 5 minutes stirring occasionally.
  6. Garnish the brinjal bharta with chopped cilantro and serve hot with phulkas.



Brinjal Bharta
Question: What is your favorite dish with 'eggplant/aubergine'?