Products
Baingan Bharta (Eggplant)
October 9th, 2009 filed under Dry Vegetables, Subji (Vegetables)
Baingan Bharta is mashed eggplant cooked with spiced tomato very flavorful dish. Traditionally bharta is made with charcoal roasted eggplant but I have adopted it to the modern kitchen. This is a very popular dish in Punjab usually served with roti.
Recipe will serve 2 to 3.
Ingredients:
- 1 Eggplant (should be big and fat)
- 2 medium size tomatoes
- 1/2 cup green chopped red bell pepper (capsicum)
- 1 green chili
- 1/4 inch piece of ginger
- 3 tablespoons oil
- Pinch of asafetida
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili
- 1 teaspoon sat adjust to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon garam masala
- 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro to garnish
Method:
- Cook the whole eggplant (put it on a microwave safe dish) in microwave for 8 to 10 minutes until it is tender. If you are using an oven, preheat the oven at 400 degrees F and bake it for about 45 minutes turning the sides every fifteen minutes. Be sure to first put the eggplant in an oven safe shallow bowl or a cookie sheet.
- Let it cool and peel off the skin then chop the eggplant in small pieces and keep aside.
- Blend the tomatoes, ginger and green chili.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan on medium high and stir fry the bell pepper for about a minute. Take out the bell pepper from pan and keep aside.
- Use the same saucepan with remaining oil heat the oil little more. Test the heat by adding one cumin seed to the oil; if it cracks right away it is ready. Add asafetida and cumin seed.
- After cumin seeds crack, add tomato puree, coriander powder, turmeric, red chili, and salt and let it cook for a few minutes until tomato puree has started leaving the oil.
- Add eggplant let it cook on medium heat keep stirring the eggplant and mashing the eggplant as it cooks.
- Cook for about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add bell pepper, fresh cilantro, and garam masala to the eggplant and mix it gently.
- Bharta is ready serve hot with rotis, parathas, or naan. Enjoy!
This was sooo tasty and delicious with paratha. I don’t like peeling vegetables or wasting skins so I left the skin on my aubergine and it still mashed down nicely and tasted wonderful.
[...] from Manjula’s Kitchen [...]
I am anxious to try your bharta recipe. We make something somewhat similar called boulanger choka. We use Japanese style eggplant, slit the skin and insert slices of garlic, coat it lightly with oil and then roast until the skin blackens and the eggplant is very soft. We scoop out the flesh and then add roasted tomato, thinly sliced shallots, hot red pepper, and salt. We also serve with roti or naan.
BTW, auntie, your recipe for naan is the best I’ve tried. Thank you!
Thanks very much. I loved the all the recipes. When I and my wife want to decide the Saturday dinner menu, we simply visit your site. Since some of the post raised the issue of using another technique for softening egg plant, I want add some comment as well. I remember my mom use to grill them straight on hob (gas) flames. Additionally, you can use barbeque to get some nice charred flavour.
Hi,
I don’t broil mine under the broiler like Melvin does but method is fairly similar.
I slice the eggplant fairly thick and peel them so I don’t have to do it after they’re baked and slightly messier at that point. I brush them with a small amount of olive oil and bake them until them are tender and brown. I don’t have an exact time that I leave them in the oven but you will know by their color and by also piercing them with a fork that they are tender. My husband from India also requests and says he likes the smoky flavor of cooking them over the open flame but I hate to do that only because it messes up and it’s a pain to clean my Viking stove when the juices drop onto the grates!
[...] I even have developed a particular fondness for that stinky cilantro (but I would rather credit my love affair with Indian cuisine for that one). Mmmm… Baingan Bharta. [...]
I don’t have a microwave. What is the best way to soften the eggplant for this dish, please? Bake (if so for how long) or boil? Love your website. Thank you!
Carol,
I really like the smoky flavor of eggplant charred under the broiler. I cut them in half lengthwise and put them face down on a cookie sheet covered in non-stick aluminum foil. Place them inches away from the top burner in your oven, set on broil for 25 minutes. Once they cool, you can scoop the mushy eggplant from the skins. (This is also good in baba ganoush.)
Hello. I found your website recently and I am really enjoying looking through all of your recipes. I discovered Indian food not long ago, and I love that your videos are so informative and easy to follow. I hope you don’t mind that I shared a link to your website in the new food blog I am working on. I think anyone who finds it will be very pleased that they did!
I have not tried any of your recipes yet, but I will soon! I just need to update my spices before I get started!!
All the best,
Irina
Your recipes are wonderful, but I notice that you do not seem to use garlic or onion…is there a reason?