Stuffed Brinjals is one of the Maharashrian vegetarian delicacies where we stuff Brinjals(eggplants) with spicy stuffing and slow cook them.

My dream to prepare perfect Maharashtrian style stuffed eggplants or what they call “Bharleli Vangi” Vangi means eggplants has finally come true. Eggplants is one of the veggies I always disliked . Tried out making various dishes but other then few selective recipes, I still cannot develop that taste.

I have this lovely Maharashtrian friend who is a great cook and I keep pestering her to teach me her style of cooking. Love the way they prepare their dishes. Other then their heavy use of oil in cooking, I admire Maharashtrian cuisine. For past few months, I was bugging her to teach me this authentic Maharashtrian vegetarian recipe of stuffed brinjals and she taught me her style of preparing it. The actual version has lot of oil floating above this dish, but I tried to cut it short without compromising the taste. I still have to give my friend the feedback and how we relished it.

In this recipe, Small brinjals(Eggplants) are used . Vertical slits are made making sure that the stem remains intact. The paste is made out of roasted peanuts, tomatoes, ginger, garlic and jaggery and stuffed inside these brinjals. Regular Indian tempering is prepared and brinjals are then cooked on very low heat in it.

Preparation Time: 10 Minutes

Cooking Time : 30 Minutes

Serves :4

Ingredients : 

• 7-8 Small Brinjals/Eggplants
• 4-5 Tablespoons Oil(I have used less but if you want your oil to float on top, add extra)
• 1 Teaspoon Cumin seeds
• 1 Teaspoon Mustard seeds
• 7-8 Curry Leaves
• 1 Small Onion, Finely chopped
• 3-4 Green chilies, Slit vertically
• 1 Tablespoon Garam masala(Try to use homemade)
• Salt to taste
• 2 Tablespoon Coriander leaves/Cilantro , chopped(Optional)

For Stuffing : 

• 1/2 Cup Peanuts, Roasted and peeled
• 1 Small Tomato
• 3-4 Garlic Cloves
• 1 Inch Ginger Piece
• Marble size ball of Jaggery/Panela
• 1 Teaspoon Red chili powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder

Method:

Rinse Brinjals(Eggplants) well using water 3-4 times and wipe them dry .

Slit them vertically into 4 parts, running the knife from top to bottom uptill the stem, without cutting the stem.

Sprinkle some salt inside the slits of each eggplant and keep them aside for about 10 minutes.

Grind together the stuffing ingredients. Use very less water. The stuffing should be thick.

In a saucepan kept on medium heat, add oil. Once the oil is nice and very hot, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and slit green chilies. Cover and let the seeds crackle. Once the crackling stops, add chopped onions and fry till the onions are nicely browned. Now the tempering is ready. Add a tablespoon of garam masala and mix.

Stuff in each eggplant with the prepared stuffing. Use about 2 tablespoons in each .

Gently place the stuffed eggplants over the tempering. Add some water. Keep the heat on low. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, turn them over and cook on the other side. Check if there is some water. If it looks too dry, you might get burnt taste, so add little more water and continue cooking for another 15 minutes or until they all are nicely blackened.

Remove from heat and enjoy with roti.

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