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bagara baingan
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Bagara Baingan Recipe | Curried Brinjal Andhra style

This Hyderabadi bagara baingan recipe is an iconic curried brinjal recipe that is super tasty with layers of flavour. Eat it with rotis or rice.
Course Main Course | Curry
Cuisine Indian, South Indian
Keyword bagara baingan, bagara baingan recipe, curried brinjal
recipe baghara baingan
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 8 people
Calories 240kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 8 aubergines small or 500 gm.

For Dry Masala

Wet Masala ingredients

  • 1 sprig curry leaves
  • ½ coconut grated
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 tomato chopped
  • 2 tsp. tamarind paste
  • 2 tsp. ginger garlic paste
  • salt to taste
  • 1.5 tsp. oil for air frying, 2 tbsp. more if pan frying
  • Chopped cilantro for garnish

Instructions

  • Clean, wash and dry the brinjals. Now slit each brinjal twice using perpendicular cuts making sure that brinjal is intact at its stem. Keep the brinjal immersed in salted water to prevent it from turning black.
  • Dry roast all the ingredients for the dry masala till they are lightly roasted. Takes about 3-4 minutes and powder them in a blender.
  • Stuff some salt and dry masala inside the split brinjals and keep aside.

For pan frying aubergines

  • Shallow fry in 2 tbsp. oil till they are semi cooked. Take them out and keep them aside.

For Air frying aubergines

  • Preheat Air fryer at 180 C or 360 F for 4 minutes. Lay the filled aubergines on the basket and lightly brush with oil.
  • Air fry for about 12 minutes till brinjals are almost cooked. The time will vary depending upon the size of the aubergines. Try to pick similar sized ones. I could cook my entire batch of ½ Kg. brinjals in one shot.

Wet masala

  • To prepare the wet masala, fry curry leaves, onion, ginger garlic paste and fresh coconut pieces in a tsp. of oil till lightly browned.
    Add one tomato and fry till mushy.
    Now blend in a blender to form a smooth paste.
  • Take the wet masala paste in a kadhai/wok, add in the dry masala and the fried brinjal, add the tamarind paste and salt and a little water if the paste is very thick. 
  • Simmer it over gentle heat with a cover for about 15-20 minutes till the brinjals are well cooked. This step is reduced to 5 minutes if you air fry the aubergines. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve hot with rotis or rice. 

Notes

  1. This recipe really calls for the small, round purple or striped aubergines. Get them at an Indian store or farmer's market.
  2. The addition of sesame seeds, poppy seeds and peanuts lends a distinct flavour to this dish.
  3. You can reduce the spice and heat by reducing the red chillies and pepper powder used. 
  4. Sometimes I use dry coconut instead of fresh coconut. That works just as well.
  5. It does taste delicious when left for a few hours as all the spices get absorbed by the aubergines. 
  6. Let the aubergines be well cooked but not mushy.
  7. Choose aubergines of similar size so that they cook evenly.

Nutrition

Calories: 240kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 18mg | Potassium: 1263mg | Fiber: 18g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 387IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 159mg | Iron: 4mg