It requires relatively few ingredient and is naturally vegan, gluten-free, nut-free, and soy-free, so it’s allergen-friendly. Serve it as a main course with some homemade vegan naan and gobi manchurian or serve it as as a side dish with some dal tadka or vegan palak paneer! PS: If you or your family members are eggplant skeptics, rest assured this is the one eggplant dish that even eggplant haters will enjoy. My partner Max has a blanket “I hate eggplant” policy, but I was able to sneak this one on him because it doesn’t look like eggplant. And he not only enjoyed it, but asked for seconds.
What is Baingan Bharta?
Baingan Bharta is an eggplant dish originating in the Punjab region of India, though there are many regional variations (as with almost every dish in a country as diverse as India). It’s smoky, spicy, and tangy, and so flavorful! In Hindi, baingan means eggplant and bharta means mash or filling (sometimes, the dish is also called baingan ka bharta, or mash of eggplant). First, for the baingan: You roast a whole eggplant over an open flame until the skin blackens and chars, which infuses the entire eggplant with a smoky aroma and taste. In Punjab, the eggplant is often roasted in the tandoor oven, which infuses it with that smoky charcoal aroma. For the bharta: You’ll sauté aromatics like onions, ginger, garlic, and green chiles in a bit of oil, along with a few spices like coriander and red chile powder; then you’ll add some tomatoes for that tangy flavor and cook until soft. Finally, add the eggplant mash into the bharta and cook everything together to blend the flavors. Fun fact: eggplant, AKA aubergine, originated in India and is believed to have been around for thousands of years!
Why this recipe works
At its core, this is is a pretty simple dish featuring minimal ingredients. The one “secret” to the most flavorful baingan bharta is to smoke the whole eggplant over an open flame until charred and almost falling apart. This infuses every bite of eggplant with the smoky aroma and taste that is a hallmark of this dish. I tested five different methods for cooking the eggplant: (1) char a whole eggplant over an open flame; (2) roast a whole eggplant in the oven; (3) grill whole eggplant on a grill pan; (4) roast chopped eggplant in the oven; and (5) sauté chopped eggplant in a frying pan. Methods 2, 3, and 4 were no-gos. (2) Oven-roasting the whole eggplant = watery eggplant with zero flavor. (3) Grilling whole eggplant in a grill pan = a little more flavor but not any smokiness. (4) Roasting chopped eggplant = more flavorful but the eggplant dried out a bit and didn’t mash well, plus no smokiness. The best method, no surprise, is the “authentic” method: smoking a whole eggplant over an open flame (on your gas stove). It adds that bold smoky aroma and makes the eggplant flesh silky and unctuous. However, for those who don’t have a gas stove or don’t feel comfortable with this technique, method 5—sautéing chopped eggplant in oil and salt in a frying pan—also worked quite well, producing soft, jammy eggplant that was easy to mash and had nice eggplant flavor. Of course, sautéing eggplant doesn’t give you that classic smoky flavor, but as you’ll see below, you can infuse smoky flavor into it with another quick method.
Ingredient notes
This recipe uses several ingredients common in Indian cooking: onions, garlic, ginger, green chiles, tomatoes, turmeric, coriander, Indian red chile powder, garam masala, and cilantro. The most important ingredient and the star of baingan bharta is eggplant. If you are smoking it over an open flame, here are a few tips when buying an eggplant.
Standard globe eggplant, Italian eggplant, or Indian eggplant (skinny Japanese and Chinese varieties will collapse on the stove). Medium-sized (around 14 to 16 ounces) Relatively uniform in girth from top to bottom. If your eggplant is very skinny on top but very fat on bottom, the top will cook through much faster and collapse before the bottom can cook). Relatively ripe/soft. The softer the eggplant, the faster it will cook on the stove (about 15 minutes). If your eggplant is on the firm side, it’ll still turn out great, but it will take closer to 30 minutes to cook.
Step-by-step instructions
Cook the eggplant.
The below photos/instructions are for roasting the eggplant directly over a stove flame (the traditional method of making baingan bharta). If you’re not comfortable with this method or don’t have a gas stove, use the sauté method, which is outlined in the recipe card notes below. Brush the eggplant with a light coating of oil and peel off/trim as much of the stem on top as you can (to avoid burning). Heat a gas burner over medium-low heat. Use tongs to hold the eggplant upright over the flame; char the bottom of the eggplant for 4-6 minutes. Flip the eggplant upside down and char the top for about 3 minutes. If the stem starts to burn, take it off the heat and try to trim more of it off. Flip the eggplant on its side and position the thicker bottom half directly over the flame. Cook, rotating every 2 minutes, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a knife can easily pierce the fattest part with no resistance. Move the thinner top half of the eggplant directly over the flame. Cook, rotating every 2 minutes, for a total of 6 minutes. The eggplant should be deeply charred all over, wrinkly, and almost falling apart, like the photo on the right. Use tongs to transfer the eggplant to a bowl, and cover with a plate to steam for 5 minutes (this is essential for making the eggplant easier to peel). Use your hands to peel off the skin (you may want to dip your hands in a bit of water to make it easier to peel). Remove the big ashy black bits (tiny bits are fine). Slice off the head of the eggplant and mash the flesh of the eggplant until very soft (use a knife or potato masher).
Make the bharta (filling).
The instructions for making the bharta (the filling or the mash) are the same whether you roast the eggplant over the stove flame or cook it on the skillet. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the cumin seeds for a minute. Add the onions with a pinch of salt and cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Cook until onions are softened but not browned. Add the garlic, ginger, serrano peppers, and turmeric, and cook for 60 to 90 seconds. Once very aromatic, add the tomatoes, salt, and coriander. Cook until the tomatoes are soft, well incorporated, and start to release oil, about 5 minutes. Add in the mashed eggplant mixture and kashmiri chili powder and toss well to combine. Reduce the heat and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring the eggplant into the bharta and mashing together. Add in the garam masala and chopped cilantro and season with salt.
Expert tips for this recipe
The eggplant needs to be very soft.
When smoking the eggplant over an open flame, wait until the eggplant is very soft. You might think it’s done because the skin is charred, but you need to test the fattest part of the eggplant with a paring knife. If there’s some resistance, it’s not ready. If there’s no resistance, like in the video below, it’s good to go. Worried that the eggplant is charring too much on the outside but not cooking on the inside? Just lower the heat a touch.
Your stove will get messy.
There’s no real way to avoid your stove getting messy when you smoke the eggplant directly over the flame. Some folks say you can line your stove with foil, but I think that’s a fire hazard. Instead, just use a grease-cutting soap and a tough sponge to clean up your stove later. A cleaning solution like Bar Keepers Friend, a baking soda paste, and/or a 1:1 mixture of distilled white vinegar and water will go a long way.
Don’t forget to briefly steam the charred eggplant.
Once the smoked eggplant is done, transfer it to a bowl and cover it with a plate to steam for 5 minutes. The steam will make it much easier to peel off the skin. It still requires a few minutes and some patience, but it’ll be much harder if you don’t steam it.
Both versions are very delicious.
What to serve with baingan bharta
We LOVE pairing this baingan bharta with my homemade vegan naan, but it pairs well with virtually any Indian bread such as rotis and parathas. You can even pair it with store-bought flatbread or pita or even grilled bread. Or, serve it over a bed of white or brown rice. Since it’s quite spicy, a nice dollop of coconut yogurt or vegan raita is the perfect pairing. If you’d like to serve it as a side dish for a gourmet Indian feast, this Tofu Tikka Masala, Vegan Palak Paneer, Braised Indian Chickpea Stew, or Red Lentil Curry would all be good options.
Video Walkthrough
As mentioned, my boyfriend Max detest eggplant. But as you can see in this video, even he loves this recipe. If you enjoy this Baingan Bharta recipe as much as he does, please be sure to rate and review the recipe below :)
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