Punjabi Baigan Aloo (Eggplant & Potatoes)

I grew up eating this dish and to me it is comfort food at its best. For as long as I can remember, this dish has been associated with someone's name - Ammaji's (Grandma's) Baigan Aloo, Badima's (Aunt's) Baigan Aloo, Mummy's Baigan Aloo ... it's a Sawhney family recipe. It has got only 6 ingredients, it cooks in 10 minutes in a pressure cooker and it is as wholesome as you can possibly get. It also uses New Veggie #42 - Eggplant (बैगन, Baigan).  Punjabi refers to a region of India and Pakistan, which is where my family originated. For those that are new to Indian culture and cuisine, here's an interesting fact - each Indian state has its own culture, cuisine, even its own language.   

Ammaji's Baigan Aloo

Prep Time: 15-20 min

Ingredients:

1. 1 medium Eggplant, cut into 1-2" chunks (with peels).  
2. 2 large potatoes, cut into 1-2" chunks (with or without peels). 
3. 3 small tomatoes, diced
4. 2-3 tsp Cumin
5. 1 tsp Turmeric
6. 1-2 tsp Chili Powder

Directions:

Add all the ingredients, and salt to taste, to a pressure cooker. Add 1/8 cup water, or vegetable broth to ensure that there is enough liquid in the cooker. Remember that eggplant is about 95% water, so it will release a lot of liquid as it cooks. For an electric cooker, steam under high pressure for 10 min. For a stove-top cooker, cook until full pressure is reached (1 whistle), reduce heat, cook for 5 minutes and turn off. Let the steam dissipate by itself (if you don't own a pressure cooker, you can make this even in a stock pot, cover and cook until potatoes are tender and eggplant has almost disintegrated, check regularly to make sure that there is enough liquid at all times to avoid burning). Open, mix well (the eggplant will basically cook down and make the dish the consistency of thin gravy). Garnish with freshly cracked black pepper and freshly chopped coriander leaves. This dish is traditionally eaten over rice, but is great for sopping up with warm bread as well. Mmm Mmm Good!!

This was also one of my dad's favorite dishes. We lost him a year ago today ... this one's for you, Daddy!! 

Veggie Fact of the Day

Eggplants belong to the same family as the tomato, tobacco and potato - Solanaceae (night shades). It was first domesticated in India although several varieties now exist across the globe each varying in size and shape. Interestingly, similar to a water melon, an eggplant is almost 95% water. Raw eggplant can sometimes taste bitter and that can be resolved by salting and rinsing the fruit in water. China is the top eggplant producer in the world, followed closely by India, Egypt, Turkey and Japan. Nutritionally, eggplants are rich in Vitamin C, potassium and calcium and are very low in carbohydrates.

Miso Roasted Eggplant & Sweet Potato

I asked my Facebook friends recently to recommend new veggies to add to my list and a couple of folks asked me about Eggplant and Sweet Potatoes. Both of these are pretty routine visitors to my dinner plate. But since I've cheated with some other regular visitors, I decided to bring these two on to the list as well. I often eat Sweet Potatoes - mostly roasted in the oven and eat them plain or I often make E2 Sweet Potato Fries. For eggplant, my go-to recipe has always been an Indian staple - Baigan Bharta, or occasionally Roasted Eggplant Slices. Today, Eggplant becomes New Veggie #42 and Sweet Potato become New Veggie #43.

Miso Glazed Sweet Potatoes

Prep Time: 30 min

Ingredients: 

1. 1 Eggplant, cut into 8 wedges
2. 2 Sweet Potatoes, cut into 8 wedges
3. 2 tbsp Miso
4. 1 tbsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
5. 4 tbsp Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
6. Pepper, to taste
7. 2-3 leaves of Basil, chopped. 

Directions:

Mix miso, soy sauce, ginger-garlic paste and pepper in a bowl to make a thick paste. Brush onto wedges of eggplant and sweet potatoes and broil in the oven on high, or on the grill 8-10 min on each side, until done. Sprinkle with a little sprinkle of salt, if needed  (I didn't add any salt because the Miso and Soy sauce had enough to make it taste just right for me!). Garnish with fresh basil and serve as a side, or eat it all as your entree ;) like me! 

Miso Glazed Eggplant

My Assessment: I didn't use any oil, to even spray the grill, so the eggplant didn't fare well on it (got stuck). Overall, this recipe worked so-so for the eggplant and was decent with the sweetness of the potatoes. I loved the Miso glaze ... it was amazing. ... next time, I'll try it with regular potatoes.