Talk about being fashionably late, that too, to your very own event! Would it make it easier for you all to forgive me if I said I was busy celebrating my B’day (which just happened to be yesterday, yet the celebrations began 2 weeks in advance thanks to the ever wonderful Hubby Dear!)? I know, excuses, excuses! But still, I’m here now - with a killer recipe in tow!
I first spotted this book at the airport en route to Delhi many moons ago. The title caught my eye and I made a mental note to pick it up on my way back. Pick it up I did, but somehow never got around to reading it. That is of course until I announced it as the month’s pick for the Cook’s Book Club event. Although I thought it was well written, I was sorry to note that I didn’t quite enjoy it much. The story line started out with a bang, but kind of got a bit predictable for me. Nonetheless, I fell absolutely in love with the colourful characters! Set in an American Indian household, the book touches upon the troubled relationships within a family. And in the midst of it all, there is of course, food. After devastating events take place in her life, Devi, the story’s main character, goes into a trance and begins cooking. She cooks when she’s angry, she cooks when she’s sad, and she cooks when she’s happy. In short, her cooking was her way of communicating how she felt.
While I wouldn’t say I’m as dramatic as Devi when it comes to expressing my feelings, I can’t deny the fact that my cooking has many a time reflected my moods. Like the time I baked four large pizzas because I was feeling artistic and wanted to create a masterpiece, literally! Or when I bake a lusciously rich chocolate cake to give myself a pat on the back. Or even the time when I cooked an extravagant 5-course meal to thank Hubby Dear for a wonderful Valentine gift.
When I look back, I always seem to remember food as something that brought our family together. Whenever we were happy or had any big news to share, food would most definitely become the center of our attention. I remember most of our birthday celebrations not by the gifts we received, but by the feast my Mom made for us. Trips home from college during the summer were often preceded by many telephone calls of planning out the menu for the day I arrived. Most of our weekends were spent entertaining friends and family. I fondly remember my Mom working her way through a lavish meal irrespective of how many guests we were expecting. She would always say that it’s better to have food left over than let your guests leave feeling unfull. It should be noted that unless you eat till you almost drop, my Mom thinks you haven’t yet had enough. And so, it is from her that I have inherited this need to cook for my loved ones, and feed them till I know they can’t be fed anymore.
Take for instance this lovely dish of eggplant. I remembered eating something like it a few years ago at a friend’s home. A bunch of us were getting together for a game night and she made an elaborate meal to kick off the evening. Then, a couple of days ago, we invited a few close friends over for an evening of cards. As I was halfway into the book and still immersed in Devi’s character, I wanted to make a meal reminiscent of game night. That’s how this recipe came into being.
BAINGAN PATIALA (STIR-FRIED EGGPLANT WITH SPICES)
Prep time: 10 min | Cooking time: 20 min | Serves: 4Ingredients:
8-10 small round eggplants, quartered
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped
2-3 green chillies, finely chopped
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp nigella seeds
1/4 tsp dried mango powder (amchoor)
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt, to taste
2 tbsp light cooking oilDirections:
Fry eggplant pieces in a large non-stick wok till lightly browned. Set aside.
In the same wok, saute onions with nigella and cumin seeds till soft and fragrant. Add in spices, green chillies and ginger-garlic paste and fry for a few minutes.
Stir in tomatoes and cook on meduim heat till the mixture is almost dry and starts to give out oil from the sides. Mix in fried eggplants, season with salt, and let cook a few minutes till eggplants are done through.
Serve warm with rice or rotis.
June 4th, 2008
i’m not an eggplant fan, but this really looks like something i’d like to try. a happy birthday to you.
June 4th, 2008
very yummy looking recipe……
June 4th, 2008
The pic is so very tempting that an eggplant hater like me, wudnt mind converting
June 5th, 2008
lovely meena…many happy returns of the day…eggplant looks very fetching!
June 5th, 2008
That is a stunning dish; your mom sounds like she’s a lot of fun! I think all desi moms have that tendency about over-feeding the guests! Isn’t it funny when the aunties say “No, I don’t want anymore”, but then let you serve them some more anyways?
June 5th, 2008
Some people don’t like eggplant? I can live on this stuff!! My mother used to be the same about feeding people - I think I have inherited that trait…
I hear ya! I can eat eggplant in any shape, size or form!
June 6th, 2008
Happy bday from a fellow Gemini! I am not a eggplant fan, but your dish looks lovely
June 10th, 2008
I was just wondering if you can make the same recipe with the long Chinese eggplants ?? I have them in my fridge right now and I am so tempted to use them with this recipe. All my family members love eggplant.
You can pretty much use any kind of eggplant for this recipe Zobars, just make sure to cut them in sizes that would be quick to cook.
June 13th, 2008
This is the first time I’m ever writing to a blogger but just had to say .. I tried it and it was YUMMY !! and that when I never like eggplant (except ‘bharta’). One question - Which cooking oil do you use for cooking Indian food and do you use different one for other cuisine??
Surabhi, I usually use corn/canola/sunflower oil for my Indian and most of my Asian cooking. Olive oil is always a favourite when making Western food, and I also love using sesame oil for some of my Chinese recipes.
June 18th, 2008
I need a clarification in the recipe. You wrote ‘fry’ the eggplants. Is it deep fry? Or should I use 1/2 the oil that the recipe calls for (i.e. 1 Tbsp), for frying the eggplants and then 1 tbsp for frying the onions, etc? I love eggplants, but just can’t get it like some of my friends make it. I suspect it maybe because I use less oil. Don’t know! Please let me know.
I just shallow fried the eggplant in the amount of oil I noted in the recipe. Since I used a non-stick pan and made sure it was well heated before I added in the eggplants, they browned up nicely without absorbing too much oil - in turn, leaving behind enough for me to suate the onions in. I usually find that if the pan is well heated, eggplants tend to not absorb too much of the oil. Hope this helps Reena!
June 26th, 2008
I made this last night. I didn’t have green chillies so I used some red Thai chillies. (6 as they were little) I used 1 giant eggplant instead of 8 babies and did not have mango powder so I used lime powder. (I am not sure as to their differences or similarities - I took a guess)
I love eggplant and had just found some nigella at my new local Persian store. I loved this dish. I served in on the deck with basmati rice and just some cut up watermelon as a tongue cooler. It was very spicy but delish. Nice with a beer, looking out over the garden. My house smelled like incense for the rest of the night. Thanks for the great recipe.
I’m glad you enjoyed it Natashya, sounds like you had an amazing relaxed dinner! You just tempted me to go out and find some lime powder - never even knew there was such a thing! Thanks!
October 12th, 2008
Considering I am not the kind that likes to go by recipes, just so I can tap into my creativity (hubby and dotty are the usual guinea pigs!) and so my cooking reflects the mood of the day/week/gathering, having found this website a few weeks ago, have been going ga ga over most recipes. In adition to my own concoctions of fusion cusines (Indian Italian - try Keema Lasgna, spicy spinach bread casserole, chicken corn sphaghetti, so on soforth).. this blog is adding color to our kitchen (& adding more shelfs to our already large pantry!).
May 12th, 2009
Iam no a eggplant fan, but the hubby is, this one will be for him! thanx!
June 24th, 2009
Thanks to T&T I came across your blog. I started blogging last year, but never had to opportunity to come by here. What an awesome place you have here, delicious recipes, simply written & easy to follow!
I made this, esp. becoz i have been making eggplant with nigella .. which had started as a spur of the moment spice choice & my family came to love it. I was happily to surprised to see the use of kalonji in this. your method was easier than mine & we loved it. Thanks Meena!
July 8th, 2009
I tried it. Absolutley delicious. I’m not an eggplant fan. You got me hooked!- Anne
November 4th, 2010
Tried it today and it was fabulous!! thanks