This brinjal curry recipe was generously shared by my podcast guest Pradeep Javedar, who lives in Mangalore, India. He chose this recipe for a simple yet significant reason. It's his favorite! As he shares in the episode, his mother makes it for him every time he visits. Also, she's alerted Pradeep's family that it's his favorite. This way, he gets to enjoy brinjal curry every time he visits family!
I was initially intimidated by this recipe. In particular, I was intimidated by the large number of ingredients and their unrecognizable names. However, after a little googling I realized that I knew most of these, just not by their Indian names. And once I took a quick trip to the large Indian market near my home, I was thrilled! Not only did I get to play with these colorful, aromatic spices in my kitchen and in front of my camera, now I'm so much better equipped to follow the recipes in an Indian cookbook that's been gathering dust on my shelf.
As for the dish itself - it's as spectacularly complex and flavorful as we've grown to expect from Indian dishes. Pradeep says most of his family and friends leave out the jaggery, so I left it out also. I did, however, go out on a limb and use the full number of chiles called for in the recipe. I'm glad I did! The spice made the flavors of the dish more layered, but it was by no means the overriding flavor. So I'd say go for it! Or don't - it's up to you 😉
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Episodes related to this Brinjal Curry Recipe
The Storied Recipe, Episode 022, "Every 100 Kilometers in India"
Follow The Storied Recipe in Your Favorite Player
Ways to Find and Follow Pradeep
Website: Pradeep's Website
Instagram: instagram.com/distilledstills
Facebook: www.facebook.com/distilledstills
Stuffed Brinjal Curry
Difficulty: Easy10
servings30
minutes30
minutes1
hourThis complex, flavorful curry featuring stuffed brinjal (small eggplants) was generously shared by a friend from Mangalore, India.
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Ingredients
10 small 10 brinjal, tender purple ones preferred
¼ cup ¼ groundnuts/peanuts
2 teaspoon 2 white sesame seeds
5 tablespoon 5 cooking oil
2 teaspoon 2 chana dal
2 tablespoon 2 coriander seeds
1 teaspoon 1 cumin seeds
¼ teaspoon ¼ methi (fenugreek) seeds
20 20 -30 curry leaves
½ cup ½ dried coconut
4 4 -5 dried red chiles
1 tablespoon 1 jaggery
¼ teaspoon ¼ tumeric powder
1 teaspoon 1 salt
1 cup 1 water
1 teaspoon 1 mustard seeds
Directions
- Prepare Brinjal
- Wash brinjal and slice them open like a flower (X) without cutting the stalk for stuffing later. Keep in water while you prepare the masala paste.
- Prepare Masala Paste
- Dry roast 2 tablespoon groundnuts and 2 teaspoon sesame seeds on a pan and keep aside in the blender until completely cooled.
- In a pan with 2 teaspoon oil, toast 2tsp chana dal, 2 tablespoon coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ⅓ teaspoon fenugreek seeds. Roast on a low flame. Add dried red chiles, about 10 curry leaves, ½ cup dry coconut, and roast on low flame until golden brown.
- Add the mixture to the blender with 1 tablespoon jaggery, ¼ teaspoon tumeric, 1 teaspoon salt, and the other ½ cup of water. Blend into a thick paste
- Stuff Brinjal
- Use ½ of the paste to stuff the brinjal and save the other half to make the curry.
- Prepare the Curry
- In a pan, add 3 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon mustard seed, and 8-10 curry leaves. Heat until they splutter.
- Add stuffed brinjal to the pan. Saute on medium for 2 minutes on all sides until brinjal changes color and is tender.
- Add remaining masala paste and ½ cup water to the pan and mix well. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes until oil separates which indicates it is well cooked. Add salt after tasting if needed.
- Serving Suggestions
- Serve with roti, chapati, naan, or any kind of bread. Traditionally served with jowar rotti in North Karnataka.
- Work well with rice, too – ghee rice, biryani, etc;. However, this rice may be a bit thick.
Notes
- Make sure to listen to Pradeep on The Storied Recipe Podcast, Every 100 Kilometers in India while you make his Stuffed Brinjal Curry recipe!
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