Baingan Bharta, Veg Punjabi Baingan Bharta Recipe with step by step photos
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Baingan Bharta is one of the very famous Punjabi main course dishes. It is made with roasted brinjal which is mashed and with spices. It can be had with Roti, Naan, Kulcha any Indian bread according to your preference. If you like this Punjabi Baingan Bharta recipe, below are the links to similar recipes :
Method for Baingan Bharta-
To make Baingan Bharta, grease the eggplant with oil using your hands or a brush. This helps in roasting the brinjal easily and also aids in the removal of skin after roasting.
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Roast it directly over an open flame until it is cooked. Keep rotating so the brinjal gets cooked evenly. The entire procedure would take around 8 to 10 minutes on a medium flame. Alternatively, you can even roast the brinjal in an oven, microwave or you can grill the eggplant on a barbecue grill, but it won’t give that smoky flavour. A good sign to know if the eggplant is cooked perfectly or no is to watch the eggplant 'cave in' on itself, the skin getting charred and flesh getting soft.
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Once it’s roasted well, remove from flame and insert a knife in the center to check whether it is cooked perfectly or not. The knife should slide without any resistance. Keep aside to cool slightly. Many people even place the baingan in a foil after roasting which creates steam and helps in loosening the skin.
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Peel the charred skin and discard it. If you find small bits of burnt skin which you do not like then dunk the brinjal in a bowl of water which will help to remove the skin that is stuck here and there.
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Transfer the eggplant to a bowl, mash the pulp thoroughly using a fork or potato masher and keep aside.
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For preparing the Baingan Ka Bharta, heat the ghee in a pan and add the cumin seeds. Ghee can be substituted with vegetable oil or mustard oil if you want.
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When the seeds crackle, add onions.
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Sauté on a medium flame for 3 minutes or till they turn golden brown.
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Add ginger. We have grated the adrak before adding to the Baingan Bharta.
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Add garlic. If you do not have fresh ginger-garlic then you can make use of ginger-garlic paste but the best flavours are obtained from fresh ingredients. Also, to make extra flavorful baingan bharta you can roast some garlic cloves along with the baingan & then add to the sabzi.
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Add the green chillies.
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Sauté for a few more seconds or till the raw smell goes away. Add green chillies as per the heat you can handle.
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Add the tomatoes.
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Add turmeric powder.
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Add coriander-cumin seeds powder.
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Add the mashed brinjal.
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Add the punjabi garam masala and salt. We have made use of homemade garam masala.
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Mix well and cook for 3-4 minutes. Our Baingan Bharta is ready to serve.
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Serve Punjabi Baingan Bharta hot garnished with coriander. You can enjoy the smoky eggplant mash with Indian spices with warm rotis and chapatis.