Tag Archives: food

Pan Fried Eggplant – वांग्याचे काप

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Eggplant is a wonderfully versatile vegetable. It can be turned into a creamy side like babaganoush, or made into a super tasty curry. Eggplant, much like okra, is a staple in many cuisines — from Middle Eastern and Mediterranean to various Asian dishes. The version I love works beautifully as both an appetizer and a main dish. The recipe I’m going to share is a traditional Maharashtrian version.

Ingredients

How to make

Wash and cut the eggplant into ½-inch thick slices. In a pan, mix together all the remaining ingredients except the semolina. Coat the eggplant slices with this mixture and let them rest for about 5 minutes.
Next, coat each slice in semolina and shallow-fry them, turning to cook both sides evenly.

These can be enjoyed as they are, or served with rice or rotis. They taste best when crispy, but are still wonderfully flavorful even the next day, when they lose their crunch.

Crispy Okra Stir-Fry

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Bhindi, also known as okra or ladyfingers, is one of those vegetables that cooks in minutes — and gets over just as quickly! Okra is also very popular in Southern American cuisine, as well as in Middle Eastern and African cuisines. My mom makes it in two or three different ways — stuffed with coconut and peanuts, curried okra, and air-fried okra chips — but I love the simple sautéed version with just a few spices.

Ingredients

  • 10-12 Fresh tender Okras
  • 1 tablespoon Oil 
  • 1 sliced Red Onion
  • 1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Dry mango Powder
  • ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida  
  • 1 teaspoon Salt (or to taste)

How to make

Slice the tender okra into thin rounds — the thinner they are, the faster they cook. Heat oil in a pan, and once it’s hot, add the sliced okra. Sauté on high flame.

Add a pinch of asafoetida (hing), red chili powder, turmeric powder, and dry mango powder (amchur), and stir well. You may notice the okra turning a bit stringy as it cooks — that used to intimidate me at first, but don’t worry! It all settles down once you add salt and a bit more dry mango powder, which helps cut the sliminess.

As the okra cooks, add thinly sliced onions and sauté for just a couple of minutes. The goal is to leave the onions slightly crunchy, not fully cooked. Adjust the red chili powder and salt to your taste.

This stir-fry tastes best with fresh rotis or simple steamed rice.

Stir Fry Bell Peppers with Chickpea Flour

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Bell peppers are one of my favorite veggies to eat, raw or cooked. Interestingly my dog also loves to snack on them. Every time we cook something which includes green bell peppers he ensures (those puppy eyes!!) he gets a fair share of the raw bell peppers. 

It’s amazing  how bell peppers are part of almost every cuisine. From being stir fried in asian cuisine to being made into curry in Indian cuisine  or in sandwiches or in fajitas in Mexican cuisine to being made into dips in middle eastern cuisines. Bell pepper is that one friend that fits into all diff friends’ groups. My mom and I grow bell peppers all summer long in our little garden. Those bell peppers are the best!! One of my favorite ways to eat bell peppers (other than with hummus  or tzatziki) is to make a simple stir fry with chickpea flour. The ingredients are simple and it comes together in less than 10 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 1 Bell Pepper 
  • ¼ cup Chickpeas Flour
  • ¼ cup Roasted Crushed Peanuts
  • 1 teaspoon Roasted Coriander Seeds Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
  • 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
  • ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida  
  • 1 teaspoon Salt (or to taste) 
  • 1 tablespoon Oil 
  • ¼ cup Water

How to make

Cut the bell peppers in small dice shape and remove all the seeds. Heat pan on medium heat and oil in a pan. Once hot add cumin seeds. Once those start to spatter add asafoetida and turmeric powder. Add peppers to the pan and mix well. Add salt and coriander seeds powder. Lower the flame and cover the pan with a lid. In a couple of minutes you will start seeing some steam and water droplets under the lid. Open the lid and add all that condensed water back to the pan. Add the chickpea flour and red chili powder and mix well again. Cover again with lid for another couple of minutes. 

You will see that chickpea flour starts to stick to the peppers. Remove the lid and check the chickpea flour is cooked well. If you feel that the curry is too dry add a couple of teaspoons of water to help cook the chickpea flour and bell peppers. I do like to leave some crunch to the peppers but if you like them cooked thoroughly then you can cook for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.  

This tastes best with fresh hot rotis and a side of yogurt or raita.