Dahi Baingan

Though I have eaten "Dahi Baingan" all my life, I developed a liking for it only after marriage. One my relatives, the very sweet “B”Aii (maternal grandmother in Oriya) had invited us for lunch. There she served us a rich and sweet version of "Dahi Baingan" and instantly hubby and me fell in love with it. Immediately it was tried at home, however it took some trials to get that kind of yum "Dahi Baingan". Thanks “B” Aii for re-introducing us to best tasting "Dahi baingan" ever. However, I too have added some of my subtle touches to the dish.

Dahi Bainga is not very complicated and does its duty as a crowd pleaser very well. So be it for guests at home or for potluck fun, it has always been a hit . So do try this as a side-dish which is sweet, spicy and does one of the best treatments to our baingan . It also pairs up as a side-dish well with both veg and non-veg main course.

Dahi baingan

Serves- 5-6 people

Ingredients :

Baingan or Brinjal (big variety) - 1 (Finely sliced)

Thick curd or Yogurt- 350 gm

Turmeric powder- 2tsp

Sugar- 4-5 tbsp (depending on your expected sweet level)

Salt to taste

Black salt- 1 tsp

Garlic- 6 tbsp (finely chopped)

Curry leaves- 1 spring

Green chillies (small) - 4 (finely chopped)

Ginger- 1 inch (crushed)

Panch phoron- 1 tsp

Oil for deep frying the brinjals

Oil- 1 tbsp for tadka

Procedure:

Take a bowl, add yogurt or thick curd, salt, black salt, black pepper and sugar to it and whisk everything well. Marinate the sliced brinjal or baingan with salt and turmeric powder. Then deep fry them the brinjal slices till tender. Keep an eye, so as not to burn the brinjal slices otherwise you may end with bitter tasting brinjals. Strain and keep it aside.  Take oil again in the pan (I prefer using mustard oil), then add panch phoron. Let it splutter, after that add, curry leaves, crushed ginger, chopped garlic, green chilies. Fry it well and then add the tadka to Dahi Baingan. Mix well and cool it for an hour before serving.

Notes:

If you don’t have paanch phoron (The famous Oriya and Bengali spice mix), don’t worry use a mix of mustard seeds and cumin seeds, or even any of them individually for tempering.

This is a sweet version of "Dahi Baingan", so if you want it to be tangy don’t add any sugar.

You may add about 1/2 tbsp of besan to the curd to avoid any curdling.

"Dahi Baingan" goes along as an accompaniment with plain rice or pulao.