Eggplant Bhareet

Hey everyone! Today I am posting about an Eggplant Bhareet I made last week. It is fundamentally Eggplant in Yogurt Sauce. It also goes by the names of Baingan ka Raita, Dahi Baingan, etc.

Fig. 1. Eggplant Bhareet

There are several variations of this dish. I have made the ultra lazy version here today. The other versions are also quite quick and simple.

Main Recipe:
1) Eggplant (1 large) is roasted on an open flame or pan. Or a few slits are poked through the eggplant and it is heated in the microwave for about 8-10 minutes till it is soft and thoroughly cooked (this is what I did). Let it cool. Skin it, take out all the pulp into a medium bowl. Mash this pulp. Add salt to it and keep aside.
2) Yogurt (~1 cup), is beaten and made smooth. Add some salt to this and mix with the eggplant pulp above. *Some people skip the curds and add lemon juice or tamarind paste instead. But I like the curds, so I always add those.
3) Now season this with one of the following:

Seasoning variation #1 (Ultra lazy version shown in picture above. No grinding, no chopping. And still tastes pretty good.)
Heat oil in a small pan. Season in this oil: mustard seeds (~1/2 teaspoon), heeng (pinch), finely chopped green chillies (~2) and curry leaves (kadi patta ~ 5 leaves). Add this to the eggplant-yogurt mixture. Mix well and serve.

Seasoning variation #2 (Mom's method. Superb!)
Grind together green chillies (~2), grated coconut (1/3 cup), salt. Add this ground mixture and 1 small finely chopped onion to the above eggplant-yogurt mixture and blend well.

Seasoning variation #3 (Mom's method. Also really good! No grinding.)
Mix together green chillies (~2), ginger finely chopped (small piece), grated coconut (1/3 cup), a few sprigs of coriander leaves, salt. Add these to the above eggplant-yogurt mixture and blend well.

Will post pics of #2 and #3 in future. Cheers and thanks for reading!