My Indian Recipes

Difficulty Rating # 2 (Little bit tedious) Eggplant – 1 large or 2 medium Olive Oil – about 3 Tbsp. Tahini – 2-3 Tbsp. Garlic Cloves – 1-2 cloves (or to taste) Ground cumin – 1 tsp. Lemon juice – about 2 ½ Tbsp. Salt to taste Cayenne pepper to taste 1.   Preheat oven to 400*.   Poke eggplants several times with a fork.   Cut in half lengthwise.   Place on a baking sheet cut side down.   Roast 35-40 min or until very tender. 2.   Remove from oven and allow to cool.   3.   Remove the eggplant flesh and discard the skin.   4.   Mash the flesh well with a fork and discard any moisture that separates from the eggplant. 5.   Combine with the remaining ingredients until the mixture is smooth but still retaining some of the texture of the eggplant.   6.   Allow to cool to room temperature and adjust seasoning. 7.   Swirl with olive oil and sprinkle with parsley. 8.   Serve with pita bread...

Difficulty Rating 3 (Special ingredients needed) Baby Eggplant (Brinjal), cut long and thin soaked in water – 4 med. Sambhar powder – 1 ½ tsp   Tamarind, soaked in ½ cup water – about 2 Tbsp.   Salt – to taste Seasoning:   Mustard seeds – ½ tsp   Urad dal – ½ tsp.   Cumin seeds (Jeera) – ½ tsp.   Chana Dal – ½ tsp.   Curry leaves – a few   Onion, diced – 1 big Oil 1. Heat oil and add seasoning in the order listed above. 2.   Add onions and cook until they turn transparent.  Add the eggplant, mix and cook for just a minute. 3.  Add the sambhar powder and mix.  Remove the tamarind from the water and add the water it was soaked in to the curry.  Add additional water (about 1 or 2 cups) and salt. 4.  Cover and cook until the eggplant it cooked, the gravy thickens and some oil comes to the top.

Difficulty 4- Special Ingredient needed, Grinding Required, Time Needed Here's an excellent eggplant curry I made recently.

Difficulty Rating 2 (Special ingredient needed) 2 cups Brinjal (small Indian eggplant) washed and cut into quarters or eighths (depending on size) 1/8 tsp. chili powder 1 tsp. coriander powder ½ tsp. cumin powder Oil ½ cup onions chopped 1 cup potatoes peeled and cut into small bite sized cubes Salt 1 cup tomatoes chopped ½ tsp. turmeric 1 tsp. ginger garlic paste Heat oil.  Add onions and cook until transparent. Add turmeric, chili powder and ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute. Add brinjal and potatoes and mix and cook covered until the potatoes are mostly cooked but still a little firm. Add the tomatoes, coriander powder and cumin powder and cook until the tomatoes start to break down. Stir occasionally. Add Salt. Serve with rice or chapati

Difficulty Rating 2 (Special Ingredients needed) 1 Large, Fat Eggplant (Wash and dice in to pieces) 3 tbsp Oil Salt to taste ¼ tsp Turmeric Seasoning: ½ tsp Mustard seed 1 tsp Chana Dal (optional) ½ tsp Urad dal (optional) 1-2 sprig Curry leaves (optional) Smash with a pestle until smoothly: 1 inch Ginger 5-6 Green chillies (optional) 1. Heat oil on medium flame. 2. Add the seasoning ingredients in the order listed. Wait until the dal becomes light golden color. Add curry leaves once it is fried 3. Add eggplant pieces , increase the heat to medium-high mix well, cover with a lid and cook until half cooked. 4. Remove the lid, add turmeric and salt to taste cook until eggplant are fully cooked. 5. Now add smashed ginger and green chili paste, mix well cook for 1 min and serve. 6. Serve this with Rice, Dal, Rasam, Yoghurt and Ghee on side.

Difficulty Rating 5 (Difficult prep, Grinding required, Special Ingredients needed) Indian Brinjal (egg plant) are very different from their cousin which is typically found in your local grocery store. The main difference is in size. they are about the size of a small onion. Some recipies can be made using the large "american" eggplant. However, this recipie requires the indian variety. They can often be found at the Indian grocery store. ¼ Cup Chana dal ¼ Cup Urad dal ¼ Cup Sesame seeds ¼ Cup Grated coconut ¼ Cup Peanuts 1 Tbsp Coriander seeds 1 Tbsp Cumin seeds ¼ tsp Cloves ¼ tsp Cinnamon ¼ tsp Black peppercorn ¼ tsp Fenugreek(methi) seeds (optional) 15 Dried red chillies 1. Roast the above items Take care not to black or burn them. 2. Once they are cool enough to touch, take them all in a mixer. Add 1 Tbsp each of Jaggery and Tamarind juice and 1 tsp of Salt. 3. Blend them to smooth consistency. 4. Take 12 young fresh looking brinjals. Make two cuts in each...