Name: Bagara Baingan Recipe / Baby Eggplant in peanut gravy
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Ingredients: 250 gm of small round Eggplant / Brinjal; 2 medium onions, roughly cubed; 5-6 medium garlic cloves, peeled; 1 inch of ginger, peeled; Lime size tamarind (soaked in 1/2 cup of warm water for 30 mins); 2 Tbsp of sesame seeds; 3 Tbsp of peanuts; 3 Tbsp of dry coconut powder; 1 Tbsp of poppy seeds; 1 Tbsp of coriander seeds; 1 tsp of cumin seeds; 1 inch of cinnamon stick; 3 cardamom pod; 4 cloves; 6 black pepper corns; 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds; 1/4 tsp of fenugreek seeds; Red chilly powder to taste; 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder; 1 sprig of curry leaves; Salt to taste; 3-4 Tbsp of oil

Bagara Baingan Recipe / Baby Eggplant in peanut gravy

Recipe by Neha NairCourse: SidesCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Medium

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Baingan bagara is one of the most loved culinary delicacy of Hyderabad in which sauteed/fried baby eggplants are drenched in a thick and rich gravy of peanuts, coconut and sesame seeds.

Ingredients

250 gm of small round Eggplant / Brinjal
2 medium onions, roughly cubed
5-6 medium garlic cloves, peeled
1 inch of ginger, peeled
Lime size tamarind (soaked in 1/2 cup of warm water for 30 mins)
2 Tbsp of sesame seeds
3 Tbsp of peanuts
3 Tbsp of dry coconut powder
1 Tbsp of poppy seeds
1 Tbsp of coriander seeds
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 inch of cinnamon stick
3 cardamom pod
4 cloves
6 black pepper corns
1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
1/4 tsp of fenugreek seeds
Red chilly powder to taste
1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
1 sprig of curry leaves
Salt to taste
3-4 Tbsp of oil

Directions

Wash the eggplants and wipe them dry. Slit vertically into quarters, keeping the stem intact. Squeeze out the water from tamarind in a bowl and keep it aside.
In a wok, heat 1-2 Tbsp of oil and place all the eggplants and sprinkle little salt over them and put on the lid.
When the eggplants are brown, flip them over and put on the lid again. Cook over medium heat until the eggplants are evenly brown and about 90% cooked.
Take out the eggplants and put onions in the same wok with little salt. Put on the lid and let it cook over medium heat until the onions are translucent.
In a skillet, dry roast cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper corns, peanuts, sesame, poppy seeds. When they are almost toasted, add coconut and let it also roast until it releases toasty aroma.
When the roasted spice mixture gets cool down, grind them along with cooked onions, ginger, garlic and tamarind water into a smooth paste.
In a pan, heat oil and splutter mustard and fenugreek seeds. After 30 seconds, add curry leaves, ground masala, turmeric and red chilly powder and stir it well. Put on the lid and let it cook for 10-15 minutes until the raw taste of ginger disappears.
Pour water according to the desired gravy consistency and mix in the eggplants and put on the lid and let it cook again for 10 minutes until the eggplants are completely done.

Notes

Serve it with hot chapati, paratha or rice.
You can use large eggplants also in this recipe. Dice the eggplants first and then saute in the oil until brown.
Usually in this recipe, eggplants are deep fried and then simmered in the gravy. But to avoid excess oil, we have sauteed the baby eggplants in little oil.
Add the cooking liquid depending on how much gravy you need in the curry.