Bagara Baingan (Creamy Spiced Eggplant)
Updated Jan. 26, 2024
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 35 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut oil, ghee or olive oil
- 4Indian (baby) eggplants (about 4 ounces each), slit vertically in half, leaving the stems intact (for other eggplant options, see Tip)
- 2whole dried red chiles (such as dundicut or bird’s eye)
- 1teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2teaspoons white sesame seeds (optional)
- ½teaspoon ginger paste or freshly grated ginger (from about one ¼-inch piece)
- ½teaspoon garlic paste or freshly grated garlic (from about 2 cloves)
- 1small red onion, chopped
- 1½teaspoons Kashmiri or other mild red chile powder
- ½teaspoon garam masala
- ¼teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1½teaspoons fine sea salt or kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 1tablespoon peanut butter
- 1½teaspoons tamarind paste (optional, but highly recommended)
- ½cup full-fat Greek, Indian or cashew yogurt
- 2tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- Rice or roti, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
215 calories; 18 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 431 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oil in a medium pot (about 9-inch diameter) or Dutch oven on high for 30 seconds. Add eggplant and fry until the skin is tender, turning the eggplant every few minutes so all sides get even heat, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove eggplant and set aside.
- Step 2
Lower the heat to medium. Add red chiles, mustard, cumin and sesame seeds (if using), and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add ginger and garlic pastes and cook until the smell of raw ginger and garlic dissipates, about 30 seconds.
- Step 3
Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to brown around the edges, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the chile powder, garam masala, turmeric and salt.
- Step 4
Stir in peanut butter and tamarind paste, if using. Add 1½ cups water, bring to a boil on high and stir until ingredients are incorporated, about 30 seconds. Stir in yogurt. Add eggplant then cover, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Step 5
Remove the lid and continue cooking on high heat until the eggplant is tender and the liquid has reduced slightly, 5 to 8 minutes.
- Step 6
Top with cilantro and serve with rice or roti.
- If you can’t find Indian eggplant — which you may also find labeled as “baby eggplant” — you can swap in about 1 pound of Japanese or Italian eggplant; just trim the larger eggplant and slice it lengthwise into four slabs.
Private Notes
Comments
Could I suggest the "non-oil" eggplant technique. Slices on paper towels - 4 to 5 minutes in the microwave (maybe be less for very small slices or a super powerful microwave). One can then brown the eggplant slices in a non-stick skillet using only oil spray. Then proceed with recipe.
This is a simplified version of the original recipe. The original has 2 signature pastes: one made by grinding charred whole onion (char it under the broiler or on an open flame), and the other from peanuts, sesame seeds and unsweetened desiccated coconut (all lightly toasted). Those pastes take a bit longer, but are essential to get the core flavour of this dish. YouTube has some great examples of the real dish.
Came out delicious. I did ground all the whole spices with some peanuts and added to sautéed onions plus ginger garlic. The sauce needed a bit sugar to balance out the sour from tamarind. Can also use amchur powder if no tamarind.
So much burning. So much curdling. I don't know why I trusted some of these instructions.
OUTSTANDING ! The only reason I can think of why a couple of people said "meh" is that they did not let the watered sauce cook long enough to become thick and, well, utterly wonderful. I roasted thick slices of eggplant, duly salted and peppered and olive-oiled, and reheated them gently in the ready sauce right at the end - oh and yes, I, too, added the yogurt at the last minute.
Used garden-grown Japanese eggplant, and did not have any tamarind paste on hand. We ‘adapted’ the oil amount to be enough to fry with but not be overly greasy. This was REALLY good. I imagine the tamarind would have taken it over-the-top, but is was wonderful in spite of the missing ingredient!
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