Oil-free Brinjal Curry | Badanekai Saaru

Whole Food Plant Based Brinjal Curry Recipe

Super yummy oil-free Brinjal Curry full of healing ingredients AND super yummy!

Ah! Brinjal Coconut Curry and I go a long way back. I remember stuffing my face with this curry, wrapped in warm fluffy chappatis.

Generally, the Brinjal Coconut Curry, much like other side-dishes would be super oily. The Brinjal would typically be fried in oil and dunked in an equally oily gravy.

Learning about the powerful correlation between refined food and lifestyle diseases led us to upgrade our lives to a Whole Food Plant Based lifestyle. We missed our favourite curries and gravys, but only until we figured out how to make them with healing ingredients! We also learned additional methods of cooking that best preserve and enhance nutrition.

Follow this recipe and make some super yummy Brinjal Curry full of healing ingredients AND one that is super yummy! It goes well with unpolished rice, millet, or millet rotis, so pick your favourite cereal and tell us how you like it.

Upgrade to food that truly loves you back!

Vegan Brinjal Curry Recipe | Badnekai Saaru

Course; Course 2: Vegetable Dishes, Side dishes for Lunch & Dinner Meals
Cuisine: Karnataka Recipe from South India
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 2 people

INGREDIENTS

Veggies

1. 4 Brinjal small, purple variety
2. 1/2 Tomato chopped
3. 1/4 Green Chilli slit
4. 3/4 cup Water

Masala

1. 1/2 Tomato
2. 1 tsp Cumin Powder / Jeera
3. 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder / Haldi / Manjal / Arshina
4. 1/4 tsp Black Pepper Powder
5. 2 tsp Coriander Powder / Dhaniya Powder
6. 1/2 tsp Fennel Seeds / Saunf
7. 1/2 tsp Urad Dal / Split black gram dal
8. 1/2 tsp Poppy Seeds / Khus khus
9. 1/2 inch Fresh Ginger
10. 1 handful Fresh Coriander Leaves
11. 1/4 tsp Black Sesame Seeds / Til / Ellu
12. 1 tsp Peanut
13. 1/2 inch Cinnamon
14. 1/4 tsp Cloves
15. 2 tsp Miso Paste (Healthy Salt Replacement. See Nutrition Science Highlights below)

Garnish

1. 1 handful Fresh Coriander Leaves
2. 1/2 Lemon
3. 1/4 cup Fresh Coconut

INSTRUCTIONS

1. From the bottom, cut twice through the middle of each brinjal, creating quarters, making sure to keep all quarters attached to the intact stalk. Soak these in water for a few minutes.
2. Chop 1/2 a tomato into small pieces. Slit a green chilli. Boil the brinjal, tomato and chilli in sufficient water to cover half the vegetables. Keep the flame low and the dish covered.
3. Dry roast poppy seeds and urad dal separately.
4. Blend all raw spices and roasted poppy seeds & urad dal with groundnut to a smooth powder. Add tomato, miso paste, and coriander leaves, and blend to a smooth paste.
5. Add this mixture to the boiling vegetables. Let it cook well so that the brinjal absorbs all the flavours.
6. Grate coconut, blend it with water to get a smooth paste. Keep aside.
7. Once the brinjal is well cooked, switch off the stove and add the ground coconut.
8. Garnish with coriander leaves and squeeze some lemon juice for extra tanginess. Serve hot!

Nutrition Science Highlights for WFPB Brinjal Curry

1. Why miso paste? Miso paste is fermented & salted soya bean paste. Maximum recommended salt intake is 3 grams per day per person. In addition to helping us restrict salt intake, replacing salt with miso paste also helps by neutralising the negative effects of salt by soya phytonutrients. You can easily make fresh miso paste at home by mixing 100 grams of cooked soya paste with 10 grams of salt, or 10 tablespoons of cooked soya paste with 1 tablespoon of salt. If making at home, ensure to use immediately, or freeze in batches to use later. Or, simply use 3.75 grams of salt or less per day per person and add 18 to 20 grams (dry weight) of soya beans in any dishes, spread through the day!