Ingredients
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1 teaspoon salt
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vegetable oil, for deep frying
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2 tablespoons vegetable oil, extra
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1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
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1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
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1 teaspoon cumin powder
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1 teaspoon coriander powder
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1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds, ground in a mortar and pestle
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4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
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1 inch fresh ginger, grated
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2 green chilies, chopped (optionally seeded to reduce the heat)
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10 fresh curry leaves
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1 tablespoon cider vinegar or 1 tablespoon wine vinegar
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1/3 cup coconut milk
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1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
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salt
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21 ounces large eggplants
Instructions
- Wash the eggplants, remove the stalk, and slice lengthwise into quarters.
- Cut each quarter lengthwise into 1" wide strips and then crosswise into 1" cubes.
- Heat 1-2 inches of peanut oil in a wok to medium-high heat (375F) and deep-fry the eggplant cubes in batches until golden brown (this takes around three to five minutes for each batch, adjusting oil temperature as necessary).
- Drain thoroughly on kitchen paper.
- In a medium-sized pan, heat the extra oil and saute and stir the onion until golden brown.
- Add the turmeric, cumin, coriander and mustard and stir for a couple of seconds before adding the garlic, ginger, chillies and curry leaves.
- Stir and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add the vinegar, coconut milk, salt to taste and the sugar and stir until well mixed.
- Bring slowly to the boil before adding the deep-fried eggplant cubes.
- Stir, then simmer gently on low heat until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes.
- Taste and season with a little more sugar and/or salt as desired.