BAINGAN BARTHA - STEP WISE RECIPE

Ever since i started this blog I have been uploading more of South Indian Delicacies. The reason being my necessity to strengthen skills in this domain as my husband and in laws are PRO - SOUTH INDIAN but they do like a few North Indian delicacies too.




As all girls do, my experiments with cooking began with a packet of Maggi Noodles way back in 1995 and I slowly picked up from there. But most of my cooking attempts were North Indian , Chinese and Italian Cuisine or Chaat. There were days I used to have Chaat thrice a week and cook others twice a week. Moreover, I did not care much about South Indian as Amma was always catering to those needs. Besides this Me, my Brother and Cousins are BIG FOODIES and we would go restaurant hunting every fortnight trying different recipes. This was also another reason for my interest in other Cuisines as I loved to try recipes that we eat in restaurants at home and impress my siblings. After my marriage my cooking dynamics have changed. I cook more South Indian and to an extent that my frequency of cooking other cuisines have lessened. Not that I have lost interest. I would love to cook other delicacies as much as I love eating them. :)

I was chatting with my friend Jayashree sometime back and she was asking me for some North Indian recipe that she could try at home. I started explaining how to make Baingan Bartha. That is when she suggested me to make it and upload it to my blog. Since BB also happens to be my husband's favourite NI dish and I prepare it quite frequently. I have made some modifications to my own recipe after taking tips from the Chef who works at an Indian restaurant named Tandoor in Ha'noi - Vietnam. I should say they serve the best Baingan Bartha....and is a must try.

Except for the stove top cooking that takes an average of 20 minutes the recipe is quite simple and very tasty. I thank Jayashree for her suggestion and this post is specially for her. Enjoy Jayashree.






Preparation Time : 30 min                      Cooking Time : 15 mins            Serves : 2 to 3

INGREDIENTS
Big Brinjals .............................. 2
Onions .................................... 3
Tomatoes ................................ 3
Ginger .................................... 2 tsp finely chopped
Garlic/ Shallot ........................... 2 tsp finely chopped
Caraway Seeds/ Shah Jeera ....... 1 tsp
Coriander Seeds ......................  1 tsp
Turmeric Powder ...................... 1 tsp
Red Chilie Powder ..................... 1 tsp
Asafoetida ..............................  2 pinches
Tandoori Masala Powder .......... 1/2 tsp ( I used Natco brand)
Garam Masala Powder ............ 1/2 tsp
Green Chillies ......................... 2 to 3
Salt ....................................... To taste
Sugar .................................... 1 tsp
Oil/ Ghee ............................... 1 tbsp
Coriander Leaves .................... for garnishing

METHOD
  • Wash the Brinjals  and apply little oil the surface.Slit one side of the brinjal surface and cook the brinjal on low flame over your stove top by frequently turning it using a tong. 




  • Cook till the surface is all smoked completely. Flakes of skin will start peeling whe the surface charscompletely. Remove from flame. Cool it and gently peel the charred skin surface carefully and separate the cooked pulp. Mash it well and keep it aside.


  • Grind two Onions and 2 Tomatoes together for the gravy. Chop the remaining Onion and Tomato and the green chillies. Coarsely powder the coriander seeds and Caraway seeds together and keep aside. 
  • Now Heat Ghee/ Oil in a Kadai and add the chopped Onions and saute well. Add the chopped Ginger and Garlic and asafoetida powder and saute till the raw flavour leaves.
                                     
  • Now add chopped Tomatoes. Dash in the turmeric powder, Chillie powder, Tandoori Masala powder,Coriander  and Caraway seed powder and cook for few minutes. Then add the Onion - Tomato paste to this followed by salt and sugar. 
  • You can taste the gravy at this stage and check for salt and spice. Add more if you require. Mix well. Lastly, add the Smoked Brinjal pulp into the Kadai and pour 1/4 cup of water and cook in simmered flame closed with a lid till the Brinjal pulp and the gravy blends well.



  • You will get a wonderful aroma when you take the lid off with a mild smoky touch. Switch off and remove from flame. Garnish with lot of coriander leaves and raw onions.
  • Serve hot with Rotis or Phulkas.

NOTES
  • If you do not like the smoky flavour of Brinjals then you can adopt the Oven method/ Microwave method. 
  • If you prefer smoked brinjals, then ensure to peel off all the charred skin completely else you will find it very annoying if the flakes come in between while you eat.
  • I keep changing the combination of Masala powders frequently to suit my taste. You can add or omit any powder if you wish. I will upload the other versions too when I make it.
  • Though I am a big fan of Garlic, I don t use it in Singapore, as my husband and in laws do not like the flavour. However I add it to my recipe procedure if I have habitually used it previously. I will post a few Garlic based recipes when I make a trip to India next time.
  • Some of the NI dishes call for Garlic use as it is an excellent flavour enhancer (Off course for those who love it) and good for health. If you don t like to use garlic, then try using shallots along with ginger paste and that is what I did. No matter what, the dish still tastes good. 
  • GO AHEAD. PREPARE, EAT AND ENJOY.

Comments

  1. iam damn baingan lover... any form of brinjal chelega mereliye.... i was searching the receipe of baingan barta... you have explained in nice and easy way... any body can follow.... thank you veery much Sowmya......

    ReplyDelete
  2. Baigan barta is really superb.......... mouthwatering recipe.. the way you have explained is awesome, this much easy method we couldn't get anywhere .

    ReplyDelete

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It is very important to cultivate an attitude of thankfulness as it helps us focus on possibilities of improvements. A big thanks for taking time to stop by my space.Would love to hear from you. I am even more eager to know if you have tried any recipe from my space. Do leave your feedback ,suggestions and queries here. You can also reach me at tuma79@gmail.com. I hope you enjoyed surfing around. Comments tagged with link back to other sources, advertisement or promotions unless prior approved will be deleted straight away.

Thanks for your understanding

Happy Cooking
Sowmya

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