I have wanted to try this recipe for a long time and can't figure out why I haven't. No idea! lol. It is one of the recipes from the 'List' hanging in my workspace. It comes from the Indian section of Hema Parekh's fantastic The Asian Vegan Kitchen
The sauce is very simple to make even with having to make the Garlic/Ginger paste. The hardest part is blitzing the tomatoes in the processor. Seriously, it is. lol.
I have to admit though I did adapt the recipe quite a bit. In Perakh's recipe she asks you to heat oil and deep fry the aubergine and I don't do that. I'm not a fan of deep fried anything so I made my mind up to adapt the beginning. I simply sauteed the bite sized aubergines and added spring onions to the pan. Once they were cooked down and tender I added the coriander and sauted for a couple of minutes longer. The sauce is very spicy so I left out the cayenne too. I'll post the recipe as Perakh advises and then it's up to you which option you choose.
 |
| Eggplant/Aubergine in Tomato Gravy |
Eggplant/Aubergine in Tomato Gravy
(Recipe from The Asian Vegan Kitchen/Perakh)
Ginger/Garlic Paste
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 piece of ginger, walnut sized, peeled
Blend the garlic and ginger into a smooth paste, using a few drops of water. Keep in a sealed container in the fridge. Keeps for 1 week.
Tomato Gravy
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1 1/4 lb/600g tomatoes, coarsely pureed
4 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup/120ml water
2 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp fenugreek powder
1 tsp cayenne powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp cardamon powder
1/2 tsp salt
Heat the oil in a wok, then saute the cumin seeds and the ginger garlic paste
Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, and the water. Add the sugar, coriander, fenugreek, cayenne, garam masala, pepper, cardamon and salt. Simmer for 5-7 minutes over a medium high heat, until the gravy thickens and the spices are thoroughly blended.
Allow to cool, then store in an airtight container. Keeps for 1 week.
Eggplant/Aubergine in Tomato Gravy
Vegetable oil for deep frying
5-6 small aubergines or 2 large, cut into bitesize pieces
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
salt to taste
1 1/2 cups/360ml Tomato Gravy
Finely chopped spring onions, for garnish (or 7 chopped and cooked with Aubs and 1 to garnish)
Heat the oil for deep frying and deep fry the aubergine until well browned. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon, drain on kitchen towel and sprinkle with the coriander, cayenne and salt. Set to one side.
In a saucepan, heat the Tomato Gravy. Stir in the eggplants until they are heated through. Remove from the heat and serve garnished with the spring onion.
Parekh advises that any leftover gravy is great as a pasta sauce topped with fresh basil and parsley. And believe me there will be leftovers..lol..it makes a lot.
NB: I made my Gravy and Paste a few days before and it keeps really well.
When arty shots go bad! lol. Ah well...it's all a learning curve.
Enjoy!
~R~
