By: Dr. Sirisha Potluri:
Ingredients:
10-12 baby eggplants, 1 medium sized onion, curry leaves, Indian thadkha spices( mustard seeds, cumin seeds, Channa dal and urad dal) and ingredients to prepare spice mix to stuff in the eggplants.
For spice mix – 1 cup roasted chick peas + 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts+ 2 tablespoons dry roasted sesame seeds+1 tablespoon cumin seeds+2 table spoons red chilli powder+ turmeric + 6-8 garlic cloves + salt to taste. In a blend make a coarse powder of all these ingredients and keep it aside.
Procedure:
Make 4 cuts to each baby eggplants in way they are still attached to stump and soaked them in salt water for 10 minutes, then wash them well and air fry them for 15 minutes at 350F. Once they cool off stuff the eggplants with the prepared spice mix and keep them aside. Heat a non stick or thick bottom pan and add thadakha ingredients and sauté them on medium flame, then add curry leave and thinly diced onions, let them all cook for few minutes until onions become translucent. Now place the stuffed eggplants on the onion mixture and cook them covered, mixing in between. In 6-8 minutes check the taste and add additional spice mix and cilantro and off the stove.
