Gutti Vankaya
Anybody from Andhra Pradesh would know what Gutti Vankaya is - Baby Brinjals in Masala Sauce. A time tested recipe and still one of the best!
Ingredients:
¼ cup Roasted Chana dal
¼ cup Roasted Urad dal
¼ cup Roasted Sesame Seeds
¼ cup Roasted Peanuts
¼ cup Roasted Grated Coconut (optional)
2 tsp Roasted Coriander seeds
1 tsp Roasted cumin seeds
¼ tsp Roasted Cloves
¼ tsp Roasted cinnamon
¼ tsp Roasted fenugreek seeds (menthulu)
15 dried roasted red chillies
12 young fresh looking brinjals
2 tsp Tamarind paste
2 tsp Jaggery (optional)
Few curry leaves
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp turmeric
Oil
Salt to taste
Procedure:
Take all of the roasted ingredient and when they are cool enough to touch, blend them all in a mixer. Add a tablespoon each of - jaggery, tamarind juice and a teaspoon of salt. Blend them to smooth consistency.
Clean the Brinjals and make two cuts in each brinjal, one horizontal and one vertical Like plus (+) shape. Keep one end intact.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan. Add and toast few curry leaves and a teaspoon each of cumin and mustard seeds.
Add the cut brinjals to the pan and also the masala powder you have grinded earlier. Add about a glass of water. Stir in turmeric and salt-½ tsp of each. Cover and cook on medium-low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring in-between. When brinjals are cooked to tender and masala sauce thickens up a bit - time to turn off the heat. Let the curry sit on stove for another 10 minutes like that, giving more time for the flavors to mingle well.
Serve warm with rice or roti.
I have prepared this quite a few times and i call it Bagara Baingan. It goes so well with Chapatis