Vangya chi rassa bhaji- JFI Eggplant and RCI Maharashtra

The Marathi 'Goda Masala' works for everything!! The main use is in making the everyday 'amti', add the amti to rice, ghee/ tup (if one does not really count calories) and a wedge of mango or lime pickle , will have you licking your fingers!!

Bedekar brand of Goda Masala is one which every lady will blindly put her trust in! in fact she will trust anything that is sold under that brand! (no, I am not advertising this brand!!!) , but this was the brand I have seen as my Mother's choice!

Now apart from the everyday amti.. Mom would use this to season vegetables too, especially when making 'vangya chi rassa bahji' (brinjal/eggplant in gravy). She made this vegetable with lots of onion and potato, which I would eat and cast aside any piece of the brinjal.

Since M is a BIG fan of 'Baingan Raja' I try to make some variety for him... but this is the first time I can,partly, vouch for the taste of anything that has brinjal in it! You see I cast aside every brinjal piece and tasted the rest..

To make this vegetable :

1 med. size Italian Eggplant or 3-4 small eggplants

1 Onion

1 Potato

2 green chillies (+/- to taste)

1 tsp Goda Masala

1/2 tsp Tamarind Concentrate (or soak and extract juice of a marble size ball of tamarind)

1 lump Jaggery (should be double the quantity of the tamarind)

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

Dash asafetida

1/4 tsp Turmeric

4 tbsp Roasted peanut powder

2 tbsp Oil

Wash and cut the eggplant into cubes. Slice the onion and potato lengthwise (or make cubes)

Heat oil . Add the mustard seeds. After they pop, add the asafetida, green chillies and turmeric.

Add the onion and potato. Mix well, cover and cook till half done. Next add the eggplant and cook till it is soft. I added the eggplant once the onions and potato was half done as eggplant needs less time to cook.

Add 1 cup of water, goda masala, tamarind conc. , jaggery and roasted peanut powder, salt cover and cook.

Reduce the quantity of water if you want the vegetable gravy to have a thick consistency.

Garnish with cilantro and serve with roti/ fulka/ bhakri

I made huge eggplant cubes, to make it easier to remove them, ideally make small - med size cubes.

This will go to Sangeeta of Ghar ka khana and aslo as an entry for RCI -Maharashtra hosted by Nupur at One Hot Stove