bagara baingan

indian is a country with multi cuisines. we all know that the north indian cuisine is different from south indian cuisine, but even the cuisines of the different parts of south india are different from each other. you see the cuisine of karnataka is different from the kerala cuisine.

even amongst the same states there are many differences. one such state is andhra pradesh. and it has both the andhra cuisine and the hyderabadi cuisine…. and they both are very different from each other. thanks to the nizams of hyderabad who have invented this rich cuisine… the hyderabadi cuisine is very popular in india as well as outside india too.

some of the few vegetarian recipes from the hyderabadi cuisine – mirch ka salan, bagara rice, khatti dal, veg haleem, zaffrani pulao, hyderabadi veg biryani and of course bagara baingan.

the faded memory of learning to make bagara baingan in my home science course days…. is just that… faded… i had forgotten the existence of this recipe till a few years back one of my hyderabadi office colleagues told me about the recipe……. again it disappeared into oblivion.

the bagara baingan recipe came to my head after a long long gap, when i had some fresh small aubergines (baingans) with me and did not know which style to cook it… the punjabi way or the goan way (the goan recipe is coming soon)…

finally a book came to my help and i straight away took this recipe from the book. chandra padmanabhan’s book  Simply South: Traditional Vegetarian Cooking has many good recipes. varieties of south indian sambar, rasam and vegetable &  rice recipes. it also covers our regulars – idlis, dosas and chutneys plus some south indian snacks and sweets. a few recipes i tried from this book and they were very good. i modified the method of this recipe to suit my laziness…

the bagara baingan recipe was very good and came out very well. bagara baingan goes well with rotis or rice. this hyderabadi baingan/aubergine recipe and the goan/konkani aubergine recipe has 3 of my favorite ingredients in them: coconut, sesame seeds, peanuts. i wonder why???

so without any delay we go to the bagara baingan recipe.

bagara baingan: serves 4-5

preparation time: 20-25 minutes
cooking time: 40-45 minutes

ingredients:
for the curry:

• 500 gms small baingans (aubergines)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 4 tbsp oil
• salt

for the masala paste:

• 2 medium sized onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic (optional), chopped
• 1 inch ginger, chopped
• 2 tbsp raw peanuts
• 2 tbsp dessicated coconut
• 2 tbsp white sesame seeds (til)
• 1 tsp poppy seeds (khus khus)
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 inch stick of cinnamon
• 2-3 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ tsp peppercorns
• ½ tsp caraway seeds (shah jeera)
• 1-2 black cardamom
• 1 lemon sized tamarind ball
• 3-4 green chillies, chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves, chopped
• ¼ cup water

method to bagara baingan:

• heat a tava and roast the spices shown in the pic below, namely – everything mentioned in the masala paste except for ginger, garlic, green chilies  coriander leaves tamarind and dessicated coconut. remember all the dry stuff has to be roasted….. no wet stuff……

• when the spices become a light brown, add dry coconut to it.

• roast the spices with the coconut. a lovely aroma of the roasted spices and coconut will fill your kitchen.

• brown the spices and the coconut.

• once the spice coconut mixture cools down then add this mixture with the rest of the ingredients ginger, garlic, green chillies, 1 tbsp coriander leaves and tamarind in a grinder.

• and grind to a smooth paste with some water.

• quarter the baingans/aubergines and soak them in salted water for 15-20 minutes.

• drain after 15-20 minutes. in a pan heat 2 tbsp oil and add the baingans/aubergines and 1 tsp salt. saute over low fire for 8-10 minutes.

• this is how the baingans/aubergines look after 8 minutes. the baingans should become tender.

• in another pan or in the same pan heat the remaining oil. add cumin seeds and let them splutter.

• now add the masala paste and start to fry it.

• continue frying the masala paste.

• this is how the masala paste looks after frying for 15 minutes.

• add the turmeric powder to the paste.

• mix the turmeric powder with the masala paste.

• fry the paste for about 20-25 minutes till the oil starts to float on the surface. and now add the cooked baingans along with 1¼ cups water.

• mix and simmer for 8-10 minutes.

• add more salt if required. remember we already added salt to the baingans while sauting them. garnish with coriander

• and serve bagara baingan hot with rotis, phulkas, parathas, pooris or rice.

• enjoy

bagara baingan recipe details are below:

bagara baingan

 

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Prep time

25 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

 

a delectable dish made with small aubergines in a medley of coconut, peanuts, sesame seeds, tamarind and indian spices.

Author: dassana

Cuisine: indian cuisne

Ingredients

• for the curry
• 500 gms small aubergines
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• tsp turmeric powder
• 4 tbsp oil
• salt
• for the masala paste
• 2 medium sized onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic (optional), chopped
• 1 inch ginger, chopped
• 2 tbsp raw peanuts
• 2 tbsp dessicated coconut
• 2 tbsp white sesame seeds (til)
• 1 tsp poppy seeds (khus khus)
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 inch stick of cinnamon
• 2-3 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• tsp peppercorns
• tsp caraway seeds (shah jeera)
• 1-2 black cardamom
• 1 lemon sized tamarind ball
• 3-4 green chillies, chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves, chopped
• cup water

Instructions

1. heat a tava and roast the spices shown in the pic below, namely – everything mentioned in the masala paste except for ginger, garlic, green chillies, coriander leaves tamarind and dessicated coconut. remember all the dry stuff has to be roasted….. no wet stuff……
2. when the spices become a light brown, add dry coconut to it.
3. roast the spices with the coconut. a lovely aroma of the roasted spices and coconut will fill your kitchen.
4. brown the spices and the coconut.
5. once the spice coconut mixture cools down then add this mixture with the rest of the ingredients ginger, garlic, green chillies, 1 tbsp coriander leaves and tamarind in a grinder.
6. and grind to a smooth paste with some water.
7. quarter the aubergines and soak them in salted water for 15-20 minutes.
8. drain after 15-20 minutes. in a pan heat 2 tbsp oil and add the aubergines and 1 tsp salt. saute over low fire for 8-10 minutes.
9. this is how the aubergines look after 8 minutes. the aubergines should become tender.
10. in another pan or in the same pan heat the remaining oil. add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
11. now add the masala paste and start to fry it.
12. continue frying the masala paste.
13. this is how the masala paste looks after frying for 15 minutes.
14. add the turmeric powder to the paste.
15. mix the turmeric powder with the masala paste.
16. fry the paste for about 20-25 minutes till the oil starts to float on the surface. and now add the cooked aubergines along with 1¼ cups water.
17. mix and simmer for 8-10 minutes.
18. add more salt if required. remember we already added salt to the aubergines while sauting them. garnish with coriander.
19. and serve hot with rotis, phulkas, parathas, pooris or rice.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 4

3.2.1652