ULLI VANKAYA PULUSU (Ennai kathirikkai kuzhambu, Eggplant in tamarind sauce)

Mmmmmmmm this is really yumm to your taste buds... Do you think why ? yah because it is spicy, sour, sweet and also salt what else we need in a dish. This is one of the South Indian gravy( kuzhambu or pulusu) in which cute little small eggplants are added to the tamarind with combination of freshly ground spice masala. It goes very well with rice served with pappad, vadagams. Perfect for a lunch menu and also goes very well with idli, dosas and aapam too. Try it out to tickle your tongue....

Ingredients :

Small eggplants(Brinjal) - 10

Shallots or Big onion - 15 shallots or 2 onions cubed

Tamarind - 1 lemon sized (pulped)

Channa dhal - 1 tbsp

Urad dhal - 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp

Pepper corns - 1/2 tsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Fenu greek - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 6 or according to ur spicelevel

coconut grated - 1 tbsp

Asafoetida - 1 tsp

Jaggery - 1 tsp

Tumeric - 1 tsp

Salt and Sesame oil(Gingelly oil)

Mustard , curry leaves for seasoning

Coriander for garnishing

Method :

1. Slit the brinjal and put in the water diluted with 1 tbsp milk so that it will turn color. They should be slitted to 4 or 6 leavening the top portion uncut. So that they remains the whole shape with the slits.

2. Take a teaspoon of oil in the frying pan and fry the dhals, coriander seeds , jeera, fenugreek, chillies everything one by one till roasted golden brown and make a powder out of it by adding the coconut too. Keep it aside.

3. In a wide frying pan add some oil saute the onions and vegetable.

4. Fry until they are slightly brown and add the tamarind extract.

5. Once they get cooked add the ground powder, tumeric, salt , jaggery and enough water.

6. Cook for sometime. Once they are slightly thickened. Season with 4 tbsp oil and mustard , curry leaves.

7. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Note :

1. This tastes so so good next day too. All the flavors gets incorporated into the brinjal and taste awesome.

2. To reduce the cooking time you can add the veggies, onion saute in the pressure pan add all other ingredients with 4 tbsp of oil pressure cook for 1 whistle keeping in high flame then season with mustard and curry leaves. This procedure saves time too.

Vanghibath

Brinjal podi koora