Unstuffed Stuffed Curried Eggplant

This recipe traditionally uses small round eggplants that are stuffed. I use either the baby eggplants or the long thin ones and and don't bother with stuffing them. I just put the paste in the pan with the eggplants. It's much easier and still tastes great. Goes well with rice and yogurt for an authentic Indian meal.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1  lb eggplant, cut into bite size pieces
• 3  teaspoons  coriander seeds
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons channa dal (aka bengal gram)
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons  black gram dal (aka urad dal)
• 3  dried red chilies (the long thin kind)
• 1⁄8 teaspoon asafoetida powder
• 2  teaspoons  vegetable oil
• 1⁄4 cup unsweetened coconut, grated (optional)
• 1  teaspoon salt
•  vegetable oil
• 1⁄2 teaspoon tamarind paste
• 1⁄4 teaspoon mustard seeds
•  water

Directions

1. Fry the corriander and chilis in a bit of oil. Pulse them a few times in a Magic Bullet (or grind otherwise) with the salt until powdered. Then fry the bengal dal, urad dal, coconut and asafoetida in another tiny bit of oil. Add to the Magic Bullet and pulse a bit more until powdered.
2. Heat 5-6 teaspoons of oil in a wok (with a lid). Add mustard seeds and cook until they turn grey and pop. Add eggplant and 1/2 cup water and tamarind and powdered mixture. Stir well. Cover wok and cook on low. Stir every 5 minutes and if the eggplant starts to stick, add more water. It will be done when the eggplant is very soft and mushy (about 20-30 minutes). The consistancy should be thick.
3. Serve with rice and plain yogurt.