Not going to lie, however I disliked eggplant as a kid. The only exception? Baingan pakora! Other than that, I wouldn’t go near it. Fast forward a few decades, and surprise, surprise—I’m now the proud owner of a website full of Indian eggplant recipes! My love for this veggie took its sweet time to blossom, but when I went full-on vegetarian a few years back, eggplant and I really hit it off. Baingan is one of the most loved vegetables in indian cuisine and is cooked in a lot of ways. We love to stuff it (bharwa baingan), deep fry to make pakoras, mash it to make smoky baingan ka bharta or turn it into a summer dish such as dahi baingan.
What’s Aloo Baingan
Also known as aloo baingan masala, it is simply, a dry dish of aloo (cubed potatoes) and baingan (eggplant) cooked together with indian spices, tomatoes and garlic-tons of it. In my home we also make rasedar aloo baingan, which is a wet eggplant potato curry, slightly different from dry preperation and has a onion & tomato masala. For most sukhi sabjis (dry curries) like this one, mom skipped onion and ginger in the masala base. I do the same. This home style, north indian aloo baigan recipe focuses on ripe tomatoes and garlic. Whip up this easy recipe in under 30 minutes! It uses a handful of basic ingredients easily available in your kitchen and is a gluten-free, vegan recipe.
My Tips To Make Best Aloo Baingan Sabzi
Picking the perfect eggplant is key! If your baingan is bad, your sabji will be sad. When you buy, look for green stems and caps—freshness alert! That means that the eggplants haven’t been sitting for long on the shelf. The skin should be shiny and the baingan should feel firm to touch. Spongy ones? Too many seeds and watery —avoid! Don’t soak your eggplant in water. They absorb water hence refuse to absorb the oil and the flavors.Cut the eggplant right when you are adding it to the cooking pot. Sometimes I sprinkle salt over eggplant pieces to draw out the moisture but I do so mostly when making pakoras. Start the potatoes first by adding them to the masala base early. Potatoes take longer to cook, even if cut the same size as the eggplants. Par-cooking the potatoes ensures they finish cooking at the same time as the eggplants, keeping both veggies perfectly tender without getting mushy. Don’t skimp on oil! Eggplant needs enough oil to cook properly and taste delicious. I’m not talking about pools of oil, just the right amount to fry the masala and enhance the eggplant’s texture. If you want, you can peel half of the eggplant, but I prefer keeping the peel on. You have to be extra careful of cooking time since peeled eggplants overcooks pretty quickly and can get mushy. When making any kind of sukhi sabzi, avoid adding too much water at the beginning. Once you sprinkle salt, the vegetables release their own juices. For the best flavor, let the sabzi cook in its own juices for as long as possible. Keep in mind that if needed, you can always add water at any stage.
Ingredients
Baingan- To be honest, I make this sabji with all kinds of eggplants—Japanese long, globe Italian, or Indian baby eggplants—all work! Just avoid ones with too many seeds, as they can sometimes be bitter. In-season baingan is always the best. Potatoes - I use russet or yukon gold potatoes. Try to cut the potatoes similar to how you chopped the eggplant. Tomatoes During summer, I use fresh ripe roma tomatoes, but canned tomatoes or tomato sauce work too. Since we’re skipping onions, the base of the sabji masala is tomatoes. Avoid using sour tomatoes else the sabji will get tangy. Chopped tomatoes can stay chunky and their skins separate(annoying to chew!), so I blend them first and then fry them with spices. Whole Spices - For the spices, use cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds (methi dana), and whole dried red chili (or red chili flakes). If you don’t have cumin seeds, you can use cumin powder instead. Ground Spices - We use spice powders at two stages. First for flavoring the masala, we are going to add coriander powder , red chili powder and turmeric powder. Then garam masala powder and amchur powder(dry mango powder) are used as finishing spices. Oil -I love using mustard oil for North Indian dishes; it gives an authentic taste and aroma. If you don’t have mustard oil, you can use another cooking oil like avocado oil.
Note - Fenugreek or methi is a lovely flavor pairing with eggplants. It has a unique flavor with notes of tangy, bitter and tangy! If you love the taste of baingan-aloo at indian restaurants, the whole fenugreek seeds and crushed kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) are the secret! I totally understand that fenugreek seeds is a spice hard to come by in non-indian kitchens. Try to source it online(via amazon) or nearest indian grocery stores. However, if you cannot find, simply skip it.
How to Make Baingan Aloo
Cooking Time - We don’t like mushy potatoes or eggplants so I have noted the cooking time accordingly. If you prefer softer or mushy eggplants and potatoes, cook longer (about 5-7 minutes extra) to achieve the desired softness.
Serving
In my home baingan aloo was usually served two ways. For lunch, Mom would make plain parathas to scoop up the sabzi, accompanied by cooling raita and fresh green chutney on the side. For dinner, we enjoyed aloo baingan with yellow dal, steamed basmati rice and either a side salad like kacumber or achar(pickle).
