Tried my hands at Andhra Cuisine, got this recipe from an Iyer mami who lives in Hyderabad, she's an amazing cook and flawless in whatever she does. A great response from my hubby who is an ardent Andhra foodie and brinjal is his favourite. I learnt that "Generous" use of chili powder and tamarind make the dishes tangy and hot.
Vankaya, in telugu means Brinjal (Eggplant/Aubergine) and usually any pickle form/thokku are referred to as PACHADI. My hubby calls this as Vankaya-Chinthapandu Pachadi :D
I like the the telugu Version of the name as it sounds authentic & nice. But I named it in the usual manner.
Ingredients :
Aubergine - 1 (Medium sized) Finely Chopped
Red chillies - 4 to 5 (i used equal amounts of spicy & Kashmiri chillies)
Garlic - 2 pods
Garlic - 2 pods
Mustard - 1 tsp
Chana Dal - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - 1 sprig
Jeera - 1/4 tsp
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Chilly pdr - 2 tsps
Coriander pdr - 1 tsp
Tamarind paste - 1 tsp (you can soak tamarind in 2 tbsp of warm water to get a concentrated paste, else use the ready made paste)
Hing - 1 pinch
Hing - 1 pinch
Oil - 5 tbsp (i have restricted the use of generous oil here, but if you want it like pickle you may add oil acc to your preference & cook it a little longer than mentioned in this recipe)
Salt - to taste
Method :
- Chop a medium sized aubergine into half inch cubes & Soak it in water such that it doesn't change colour.
- In a non stick pan, add oil, to it add mustard, chana dal, dry red chillies (adjust acc to ur spice levels), add curry leaves, and jeera.
- Allow it to splutter in a low flame.
- Add the chopped aubergine, garlic & give it a quick mix.
- Add hing & turmeric & close it with a lid & let it cook for 12-16 mins until soft in med flame. In between 5-7 mins give it a quick stir.
- Add 2 tsps of chilli pdr, Salt & close the lid again.
- After 3 mins add 1 tsp of coriander pdr & keep stirring. Now add 1 tbsp of tamarind paste. At this point the aubergine would have shrunk in its size & will start sticking to the base, so keep stirring continuously on a med flame.
- It will look like pickle & oil will start oozing, this is an indication that its done.
- Switch off & serve with idli, Dosa, dal chawal (Pappu buua) or even mix in hot rice with Desi ghee.
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