Badanekayi Ennegayi
small eggplants stuffed with a dark peanut-sesame masala and stewed in tamarind
Allergens in Badanekayi Ennegayi: peanuts, sesame, mustard.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 10 small round ones, about 500g Eggplantthe short purple variety, stalks left on
- 1/3 cup Peanut
- 3 tbsp Sesame
- 1/3 cup, grated Dried Coconut
- 6 byadgi Dried Red Chillifor colour more than heat
- 2 tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Cumin Powder
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
- 2 tsp, grated Jaggery
- walnut-sized ball, soaked in 1/2 cup hot water Tamarind
- 1 medium, finely chopped Onion
- 6 cloves Garlic
- 5 tbsp Groundnut Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard Seeds
- 10 Curry Leaves
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetidause compounded-free hing to keep this gluten-freeoptional
- 3 tbsp, chopped Coriander Leavesto finishoptional
- to taste Salt
- 1 cup Water
Cookware
stovetop, kadhai
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Soak the tamarind in hot water for 20 minutes, then squeeze and strain; keep the pulp.
- Slit each eggplant into quarters from the base, stopping short of the stalk so it stays whole, and drop them into salted water until you are ready to stuff.
- Dry-roast the peanut, sesame and coconut separately. They brown at very different speeds and one burnt batch will make the whole masala bitter.
Method
- Dry-roast the peanuts over medium heat 5 minutes until the skins blister and loosen, then rub off the skins in a cloth.
- In the same pan roast the sesame 1 minute until it pops, then the dried coconut 2 minutes until sandy brown, then the red chillies 30 seconds.Take the coconut off the heat the moment it smells nutty. It goes from brown to bitter in seconds.
- Grind the roasted peanut, sesame, coconut and chillies with the garlic, coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric, jaggery, 2 tbsp of the tamarind pulp and 1 tsp salt to a thick, coarse paste using splashes of water.
- Drain and pat the eggplants dry, then push a heaped teaspoon of the masala into each one, working it into all four slits. Reserve the leftover masala.Stuff them generously but do not force the quarters apart, or they will collapse in the pan.
- Heat the groundnut oil in a kadhai, crackle the mustard seeds, then add the curry leaves and hing.Stand back. Wet curry leaves spit in hot oil.
- Add the onion and fry 6 minutes until soft and pale gold at the edges.
- Lay the stuffed eggplants in a single layer, cover and cook 8 minutes on low, turning them gently twice so each side takes colour.
- Stir the reserved masala and the remaining tamarind pulp into 1 cup water and pour it around, not over, the eggplants.
- Cover and simmer 15 minutes on low until the eggplants are collapsing-soft when pressed and the gravy has darkened and thickened, with oil pooling at the edges.That ring of oil separating out is the sign it is done. Ennegayi literally means oil-vegetable.
- Taste for salt and sour, scatter the coriander leaves and rest 10 minutes off the heat before serving with jolada rotti.
Storage
Keeps 3 days refrigerated and tastes better on day two. Reheat covered on low with 2 tbsp water; do not stir hard or the eggplants will break up.
Nutrition Medium estimate
One serving of Badanekayi Ennegayi (262 g) is about 372 calories, or 143 calories per 100 g.
Low protein: 7 g a serving, 8% of the calories
| Per serving262 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 372 kcal | 143 kcal |
| Protein | 7.4 g | 3 g |
| Carbohydrate | 20.6 g | 8 g |
| of which sugars | 9.0 g | 3 g |
| Fibre | 8.3 g | 3 g |
| Fat | 31.5 g | 12 g |
| of which saturated | 8.0 g | 3 g |
| of which unsaturated | 21.7 g | 8 g |
Ingredients given to taste count as zero, so the real figures run a little higher. Nearest database match used for asafoetida, curry leaves, jaggery. Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: Vegan Indian recipes · Vegetarian Indian recipes · Gluten-free Indian recipes · Dairy-free Indian recipes · Karnataka recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.