Today’s special recipe is brinjal or vankai pacchadi. I remember whenever my mom used to make this chutney in the kitchen..i could recognize the smell from the distance..and i used to just pick a plate..put some rice and thats it..wait wait till the chutney is complete. :) Best thing about this chutney is the lemon flavour and that tantilising taste of roasted brinjal. Well…here is the recipe and try it out for yourself.
Ingredients:
Big oval shaped brinjal [2 small ones or 1 medium to big size]
3 green chillies
3 dry red chillies
1/2 tsp urad dal
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp jeera or fennel seeds
2-3 methi seeds or fenugreek seeds
3 pinches of inguva (hing)
A Pinch of turmeric
Juice of 1 full lemon
Equipments needed for this recipe
1. Small pan
2. Grinder
Preparation time: 30 mins
Cook time: 5 mins
Method :
Roasted brinjal
The chutnery..is ready!!
Brinjal Chutney
1. Apply 2 drops of oil and spread it evenly on the entire surface of vankai. It should be shiny once you are done applying the oil.
2. Place the brinjal on the smallest burner / ring on your stove top, keep the heat level to medium. This is the roasting process . Although one can roast the brinjal in oven too..but this seems more simple and easy. If the brinjal is tender then it should take about 20 mins to roast. You might want to turn the brinjal to different sides [like we do when we grill] so all the skin is roasted. You can tell that brinjal is roasted when you can see the skin falling off and the brinjal is reduced to 1/3 of its size.
3. Shut the stove and put the brinjals on a plate so they can cool. Once they cool, remove the skin and separate out the flesh of brinjal. This is what will be used in chutney. While the brinjals are roasting, you can do the popu/tadka part.
4. In a pan , take about 1.5 tbsp of vegetable oil, add mustard seeds, urad dal, jeera, 2-3 menthulu, 3 dried red chillies, 3 green chillies , 3 pinches of inguva , curry leaves. Once they start spluttering and seeds are turning brown, remove from heat and add a pinch of turmeric. Let it cool,
5. The final step is to mix the roasted flesh of brinjal to the popu , squeeze juice of one lemon on it and give a rough grind so you can still see the popu seeds and thats it..vankai pacchadi is done!!!
Note : You can also roast brinjal in a preheated oven (350 degrees). for 1 hour.
This is a great recipe , goes well with rice, parathas, chapattis, fulkas or even bread.
At least thats what I like to eat! Of course I like the spicy version..just bake them..sprinkle spices thats it..its done and ready to eat!
