By: Esther Vasa
Ingredients:
Baby eggplants (a.k.a brinjals) – 6
Onion – 1 diced
Tomatoes – 2 diced
Tamarind – lemon sized soaked and juice extracted
Peanuts – hand full
Sesame seeds – 2 tablespoon
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste – ½ tsp
Chili powder – 1/8th tsp
Turmeric – 2 pinches
Coriander powder – 1/4th tsp
Cumin powder – 1/4th tsp
Curry leaves – 5
Salt – per taste
Fresh Cilantro – to garnish
Preparation:
In a little bowl mix chili powder, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt with some water. You will only dampen the spices so that it allows you to stuff your egg plants with this spice mixture.
Clean the eggplants and cut the ends leaving a portion of the stem. Do not dice the eggplants. Instead cut it lengthwise perpendicularly but do not run your knife all the way through. You are only making room for stuffing your eggplants. Now stuff each eggplant with a little of the spice mixture you prepared before. Leave them aside.
In a steel pressure cooker fry your peanuts until slightly brown and now add the sesame seeds and let them crackle. Transfer this into a bowl and let them cool off a little bit. In the same cooker, put some oil and fry the onions and curry leaves till they sweat. Add ginger garlic paste and allow it to fry for a minute and then add the diced tomatoes. Transfer this to another bowl and let it cool off a little bit. Now put in a blender the ingredients that have cooled off in the two bowls. Using the tamarind juice that you have extracted blend in the blender until a smooth paste is formed.
In the cooker, put the other tablespoon of oil and add the stuffed eggplants. Carefully turn the eggplants after a minute. Do this for three or four times. Then add your paste to the stuffed eggplants and put some water till the eggplants are immersed in the water. Let it cook in the pressure cooker for about 10 minutes. The pressure cooker might release steam for 3 times or so. The eggplants get cooked quickly so do not over cook the eggplants. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Enjoy your stuffed eggplants with a cup of warm rice.
Preparation Time: Less than half-hour
Serves: 3
