Bagara Baingan is a relatively mellow Hyderabad dish that uses young brinjal or baingan and a masala paste with peanuts. I tried this with roti and it was a delicious combination! A friend of mine had been asking me for a good bagara baingan recipe after trying it in Hyderabad so I was kinda forced into making this but boy, am I glad I did. Try this easy bagara bainga at home, you surely won’t be disappointed.
This bagara baingan recipe is loosely based on a recipe I saw in a Nita Mehta book at the library. I didn’t borrow it so made this based on what I could remember from her recipe. The amount of ingredients are all my own approximation but it turned out very tasty, a perfect combo with roti, pulao or biryani (like they serve it in Hyderabad).
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- 6 purple baby brinjals
- 2 tbsp white sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp peanuts
- 2 tbsp grated coconut
- 1 onion, chopped fine
- 1" piece of ginger
- 2 garlic pods (or 2 tsp ginger garlic paste)
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp jeera / cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp coriander powder/malli podi
- 1 tsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
- A small lemon sized ball of tamarind
- 1 tbsp oil
- Salt
- Fresh coriander leaves for garnish
- Dry roast the peanuts and sesame seeds separately until golden brown. Set aside to cool. Then, grind together with the coconut and little water to form a smooth paste.
- Extract the tamarind paste in 1 cup warm water. Grind the ginger and garlic together if using fresh gg paste.
- Fry the brinjals in oil until soft but still holds shape. Drain and set aside. In the same oil, fry the onions and ginger garlic paste until golden. Then add the ground paste and fry for a minute.
- To this, add turmeric powder, chilli powder, jeera, coriander powder and salt. Mix well and fry for another minute.
- Add the tamarind water, mix, then add the brinjals and cook closed for 5-10 mins. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves before serving.
Then, dry roast 2 tbsp peanuts until roasted and brown. Mine was raw and unsalted so if you are going to use the salted kind, then make sure you keep that in mind while adding salt to the final dish. Set aside.
Next, heat 1 tbsp oil in the same kadai and throw in the washed and slit baby brinjal. We are using the same kind used for ennai kathirikkai kuzhambu. Fry until soft and set aside.
In the same oil, add 1 onion, chopped fine.
To this, add a 1″ piece ginger and 2 garlic pods ground together. Alternately, add 2 tsp readymade ginger garlic paste.
While you let that fry, grind the sesame and peanuts with 2 tbsp grated coconut to a smooth paste.
Which looks like this. Yes, you can add a little bit of water while grinding.
By now, the onions would have started to brown. Add the ground paste and mix well.
To this, add 1/4 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp jeera, 1 tbsp coriander powder and 1-2 tsp red chilli powder, with salt.
Mix well and stir for a minute until the paste thickens.
I know this looks kinda gross so let’s quickly get this over with. Add the tamarind water made with a small lemon sized ball of tamarind and 1 cup warm water. Ok next step, quick!
*Please ignore the stains on my stove. They are from a dish I made just before this. Thank you*
Ah, not so bad once its mixed. So mix well and then..
.. add the fried baby brinjal.
Cook closed for 5-10 mins until the gravy thickens.
Done! Serve bagara baingan warm with a garnish of chopped coriander leaves. This tasted really really good and I really think I should make more curries with roasted peanut paste as the base. The sesame really helps enhance the taste too!
Hi my husband is allergic to peanuts…can it be substituted with any other ingredient.
peanuts for authentic flavour, almonds or walnuts may work too for texture
So tempting that I got brinjals immediately and tried it. It came out well. Thanks for sharing.
wow! thanks for sharing that 🙂
I had made this Michi Ka saalan in 1990s … recipe was from a neighbour Parveen … it matches with ur recipe .. am so happy … am trying out capsicum in this gravy …
Looks fabulous! I would love to try this but no one at home likes Brinjals. Any other vegetable you would suggest as an alternative for the same gravy??
You can try it with potatoes I guess?
JUSSSSSSSTTTTT FANTABULOUSSS !!!!
tried ur recipe…its awesome..love it..love ur photography too..
awesome recipe…tried it..love it!!
I made the dish editing only the coconut out and it was awesome. I also used the gravy as a dip for my masala vada, which turned out to be a big hit. Thanks for sharing this recipe..
I tried the recipe without the coconut as I don't like coconut. It was awesome. Thanks for sharing this. Veni
I am becoming a fan of your recipes. Tried this one today and was superb .. I had some north indian veg guests and was totally upset. For me always special cooking is non veg .. then saw this.. thanks a lot
I tried the exact recipe, then i felt is salt is little more , there was no ready cocunt milk at home, so found netle cream in the fridge and added 2 spoons of that .. It was good .
I tried this recipe and it turned out very good. my husband and kids loved it. Thank you!
Ans you call yourself lazy? Are you kidding me… Thanks for all your effort and posting pictures just helps to remember the recipe better.
Thank you for the recipe the kids loved the bagara baigan.
I am from Pakistan, I have some hyderabadi frends. I always loved their food. Well I tried this recipie yesterday and believe me , my family and me are just loving it. It turns awesome. Thanks a lot for sharing such a wonderful delicious recipie with pictures, Picture worth thousand answers. I served it with naan and hyderabadi kachay gosht ki biriyani . It was great. Anyway South Indian food rocks. Love it
Thanks Loved it though i have made it in the past…I am too laid back for a complex recipe , but I found this indeed clear & simple ,just the way i like it..thankls again..:)
Hi,
I made this for lunch..It turned out really well..
Thanks:)
vini
very nice way to tell a recipe.thanks
Hey,
I tried this recipe. VERY easy to follow – especially with the useful pics of every step.
It turned out to be really nice. I kept half of the paste to marinate the 'baingan' (so it tastes as good as the gravy).
So, I substituted Tahini with sesame seeds and used peanut butter…still turned out aight but was slightly on the sweeter side..it was very quick though- 15 minutes flat and my bagarey bhaingan were ready
those are both awesome ideas! wil surely try those next time i make them, and maybe kick the heat up a notch to make up for the sweetness! its been ages since i made my bagara baingan recipe
Just read one more comment by some anonymous coward… sorry i am not on a perpetual diet baby . I am a happy foodie and write a nice healthfood blog and if you have seen a nice traditional foods blog too where all my rich recipes find a proud place.
This is for that coward and not for you Nags 🙂
Had just come to check your reply and spotted that one too:)
I landed up here somehow today and saw your answer to my comment . I am sorry i was not clear enough the first time so i take this opportunity to make amends now….i called this masala paste healthy in the positive way and ranted about the richer recipes i had seen including cashew and lots of oil etc…. the healthier version i had posted included fenugreek leaves 🙂 …i am really smiling at this right now.
Yes healthy is a very subjective word and fat is not at all unhealthy , ghee is considered good and healthy in North Indian food and that is my kind of food … ayurveda considers ghee good …
This recipe in fact has all the good fats , from sesame , peanuts and the coconut all are considered good….I am sorry if my comment hurt you in any way….it was not meant to be so.
Yeah I read that too… may have influenced how I interpreted your comment, not sure.
Anyway, here's to more healthy cooking and absolutely no hard feelings!! 🙂
OMG! Even I don't remember reading this comment or replying like I did! No offense taken, sorry for the drama 🙂
thanks for dropping by radhika. i am definitely going to try it your aunt's way next time!! 🙂
your recipe is pretty much the regular one made by my aunt in hyderabadi ( a true blue blooded hyderabadi) except,
heat oil and splutter jeera and then add the gooey ground masala. ( so no jeera powder)
burn a whole onion over your stove flame till peel is black. clean and chop the half roasted onion and grind with masala. and no chopped onions.
nice page 🙂 and love your style of writing.
radhika
love d way u portrayed ur dishes n ideas .. love u nags 🙂
I had bookmarked this for a while now and finally made it yesterday. It came out so so super. Many times it looked different than your pics and I was worried. But I guess with such wonderful flavors and your awesome explanation, it doesnt matter if things are off a little. I had initially thought all the steps would make it exhausting. But its super easy.
Thanks a lot, I have been feeling extra proud of my cooking after making this.
very nice blog,come know about other recipes of hyderabad only at crazyhyderabad.com
I love the look of this curry. It looks so doable and pretty quick too. I'm just starting to delve into Indian cooking and find it a real challenge. This looks perfect though 🙂
Thanks for trying Priti 🙂 I updated my Tried and Tasted section with your link too!
Hey dear tried the bagara baigan and it was yummy….have posted the recipe too..thanks for sharing
Thanks! There were some green brinjals lying around at home and your yummy looking recipe sprung to mind. I'll let you know if I make it… I have to get some sesame and peanuts first. Hopefully that will happen before the brinjals over ripen.. Things move very slowly this side of town 🙂
Haha good luck with making the bagara baingan Rosa 🙂
Rosa, I am not sure of green brinjals, traditionally, the purple ones are used for this. you could try the green ones but the flavour may differ. Let me know if you do 🙂
Would this work with the green brinjals as well?
looks delicious 🙂
hehe thanks! 🙂
try using baby brinjals next time, or double the quantity of ingredients required for the sauce and you should be just fine 🙂
This was delicious! And the 'rainbow' circles of colours the brinjals get after frying (before you put them in the sauce) are so pretty! I suppose our eggplants were too large, they must be teenagers not babies hehe…but it worked well with 5 in the pot, there was just not enough sauce. We will make again. Thanks for sharing!
Hi,
I am not a baingan fan, but Bagara baingan, Hyderbadi style is something that I relish. My daughter sent this blog trail for my wife. I happened to go through and was fascinated by the easy steps and the wonderful pictures to go with the narrative. We have all the ingredients ready and it is time to get into anction for Bagara baingan. Thanks
Ajith
Thanks a ton for the sweet comment Ajith. Hope you tried it. If you could click a pic and send me, I will feature you in the site 🙂
Hi! Your recipe turned out perfect! I love the step by step pictures. I have posted your recipe on my blog. One different thing I did was broil the brinjals instead of frying them. http://kutyskorner.blogspot.com/2010/05/bagara-baingan.html
Thanks a ton Divya. Yes, this Bagara Baingan recipe really works for me too each time.
i had tried this recipe frm many websites before and it didnt turn out quiet as well. But this one is totally foolproof and tastes amazing! i have made your recipe one too many times now… and it turns out awesome every time! thanks for posting it! will keep visiting!
aah nice. and looks easy enuf to become a must-try. and abt feeling all keyed out, trust me, that bit has hit me too, so i just know that its lack of vacations, sleep, too much work and all else combined. go to phuket 🙂 and life will come rushing back in!
Nags visit me I will give you my mojo come. I have a feeling my mom has hidden this book and uses the recipe from the book. She makes it the same way peanuts and blah- except she stuffs the brinjal with the thing. Bookmarked!
PS- I think a cosmopolitian everyday brings back the mojo. u wwant?
I hav tried this watching vahchef's video..was so yumm..nice step by step presentation,Merry x'mas….
Thanks for that wonderful step by step recipe – what an amazing effort you have put in!
Wonderful dish Nags..love your step by step pictures 🙂
love the gravy… would probably substitute eggplant with something else.. please post the photography basics drafts. your photography basics posts helped me a lot..
oh girl, thats one awesome dish.cant wait to have my hands on it.
ive tried making this once, but never got this nice colour!! this looks gorgeous!
Hahaaa,me to in same phase ;P
Nice recipe,with my fav veggie!!
i make this very often..i leant this from my neighbour….hyderabad is one place with different tasty recipes..delicious..please do collect ur gift from this http://easy2cookrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-250-th-post.html
Yo Yo Yo Nags – c'mon over – I have an Xmas gift for you….
Now that just took corniness to an entirely new level…sheesh…
Am on an eggplant spree too! 🙂
Isn't there something about this luscious vegetable that brings out such rich creations?
Loved the post!
I get bored with blogging a couple times a year, maybe more… I lose interest in cooking, blogging, everything… Then I just let it pass and my interest comes back… this recipe looks soooo good! I am an eggplant fanatic and I can't wait for the markets to open up this spring so I can get some more of these baby eggplants!
Thanks Pretty Woman 🙂 So glad you liked the bagara baingan recipe. I felt I wouldn't make it unless its shown step by step to me so that's why I did the same for you guys!
thanks a ton for posting this step-by-step! I had this a long time back, my mom's friend made it for me…but i lost the recipe…
I wanted to recreate it recently and found it on ur blog!! Awesome pictures too…crystal clear process! Kudos to your patience!
Thanks Pretty Woman 🙂 So glad you liked the bagara baingan recipe. I felt I wouldn't make it unless its shown step by step to me so that's why I did the same for you guys!
thanks a ton for posting this step-by-step! I had this a long time back, my mom's friend made it for me…but i lost the recipe…
I wanted to recreate it recently and found it on ur blog!! Awesome pictures too…crystal clear process! Kudos to your patience!
I tried this recipe last week and it came out great. Instead of looking at each pic, I went straight to the summarized recipe and luckily slit the baingan (thinking I was being smart). It does say "split" under the pic 🙂 I like this method to the longer, tedious one my hubby does, he was impressed too. One more thing, I made the mistake of deep frying baingan, the taste was great but didn't want calories. Oh, I used tamarind paste sparingly, it worked out. This recipe is a keeper, thanks so much!!
rk, thanks for letting me know the feedback after trying the bagara baingan. i will also correct the typo 😀 hehehe 😀
hahaha Keerthi! You are so funny 😀 Glad you liked the bagara baingan recipe 🙂
omg i totally love you!!! 🙂 🙂
made this today for lunch bcoz mom left for US to be with akka n even my thathi was all praise for me which is extremely rare! :))
thatha n dad were super amazed and it was an overall BLOCKBUSTER HIT!! 😀
This stuff is phenomenal:))
I second the thing about coconuts – "coconut oil" and "coconut butter" is the hip new thing among the vegans & health nuts 🙂 oh and coconut water that is ridiculously expensive in a tetrapak!!
Perfect with roti,yummy curry
Never knew such a recipe existed.. btw, is it also called gutti vankaya koora or a variation of gutti vankaya koora?
Hi Nags, yes, you should google superfoods and coconut products (esp. raw shavings and virgin coconut oil) are up there with ginger, acai berries, and, yes, chillies (so imagine all the good there is in Indian food!). This might sound counter-intuitive, but people who have coconut regularly in their diet are lighter than the average. And, if you google coconut and superfoods, you'll come across quite a lot of information on its weight-loss properties. Go coconuts about it! 😉
Anupama, this is different from the Andhra gutti vankaya recipe. That one uses more spices and involves stuffed brinjals 🙂
As for coconut being bad for the health; well it is now deemed a "superfood". Now in Europe and in the US, cooking with coconut oil is the latest thing. Studies show that it is amazing for staving off cancer and all sorts of diseases. And this has been scientifically proven now.
Jeremy, I didn't know that! Thanks for reinstating my faith in coconuts 😉
I get bored with blogging a couple times a year, maybe more… I lose interest in cooking, blogging, everything… Then I just let it pass and my interest comes back… this recipe looks soooo good! I am an eggplant fanatic and I can't wait for the markets to open up this spring so I can get some more of these baby eggplants!
Nags, that looks delicious. Wanted to wish you and your family Happy Holidays and warm wishes for the New Year!
Happy Holidays!
Ummm…no seriously…I.Have.An.Award.For.You Gift waiting for you…in my blog 😉
Am on an eggplant spree too! 🙂
Isn't there something about this luscious vegetable that brings out such rich creations?
Loved the post!
That's a good work of step by step pics you have given here. End result is the delicious looking baingan. Happy holidays, nags.
A typical Hyderabadi dish. So nice. Also, I understand how you feel, I did not blog for more than a month!
Yo Yo Yo Nags – c'mon over – I have an Xmas gift for you….
Now that just took corniness to an entirely new level…sheesh…
hehe Ann! Still cute only 🙂
Anything with Baingan and am in for it:)It surely makes me hungry:)
Such a fantastic and beautiful dish…makes me hungry..
Love the look of this..I am on an eggplant spree right now, been making so much of it lately…Had this really long back…Must make with some biryani…
i make this very often..i leant this from my neighbour….hyderabad is one place with different tasty recipes..delicious..please do collect ur gift from this http://easy2cookrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-250-th-post.html
Nags, I so agree with being lazy part. I have made Hyderabadi dum biryani but never got to post it. I follow the same recipe just that I put everything in the blender 😀 Tastes awesome right?
ah looks creamy and colorful. nice step by step pics.
Lovely. I remember my mom's baigan . This one looks lip smacking.
ive tried making this once, but never got this nice colour!! this looks gorgeous!
oh girl, thats one awesome dish.cant wait to have my hands on it.
I love the step-by-step pics, that gives me an incentive to make dishes I would never have otherwise
Bong Mom
It looks delicious,rich and flavorful
Sangeeta – 'healthy' is a subjective word. I grew up eating copious amounts of coconuts in various forms every day. To this minute, I don't believe its harmful or fattening like many studies and people claim. In Kerala, its a staple and used in almost everything. Likewise, I know in some parts of India, ghee is used every day and even considered medicinal but here in Singapore, people call it 'animal fat' and stay away from it.
Its all in the mind and perception. Having said that, I don't serve food like this (I actually don't think this bagara baingan is "rich") every day obviously. I share recipes here that I try out as I go and are usually not regulars 🙂
love the gravy… would probably substitute eggplant with something else.. please post the photography basics drafts. your photography basics posts helped me a lot..
I would love this gravy, i am not a fan of eggplant but enjoy the gravy with rice, roti or even bread!
I know what u mean by feeling lazy, i have this inertia too…sigh!
So creamy and rich gravy!
Hahaaa,me to in same phase ;P
Nice recipe,with my fav veggie!!
Wonderful dish Nags..love your step by step pictures 🙂
wonderful recipe nice step by step…. I use to make this for every week end now a days I became little lazy…. feel like have that delicious cury with rice ymmmmmmm mothwatering….yeh very tempting pic. too nags
perfect picture.good one brinjals
Thanks for that wonderful step by step recipe – what an amazing effort you have put in!
this is exactly what I am feeling right now. My reader has not been opened since 2 weeks. I have never tried baghara baingan. hyderabadi food is always soo yummm
Wow looks so yummy and with wonderful step by step photographs… Reallt tempting nags
@ sangeeta, I don't understand your problem with people eating a rich version of a curry. Just because you are on a perpetual diet doesn't mean the entire nation is on a diet.
I hav tried this watching vahchef's video..was so yumm..nice step by step presentation,Merry x'mas….
lovely pictures and yummy baingan !!
i posted a healthier version of this vaghara baingan recently and a few more recipes with this awesome paste…most recent being chhole with gobi..
this really is a yummy n healthy masala paste , some people make it unnecessarily rich though…
i hope you get your mojo back cos i look forward to finding out about food photography from you.
Looks and sounds delicious!
Bagara baingan looks nutty and flavorful!
Nags visit me I will give you my mojo come. I have a feeling my mom has hidden this book and uses the recipe from the book. She makes it the same way peanuts and blah- except she stuffs the brinjal with the thing. Bookmarked!
PS- I think a cosmopolitian everyday brings back the mojo. u wwant?
Wow sooooo tempting dear….Ithu muzhuvan kazhikkan thonunnuuuuu….
Oh no u should pull out those drafts & work on it soon.Long weekend coming up so am sure u can make it nags….so will wait for it.I've also been planning(still in planning phase :() a post on photography for a long time not that I am gud at it but still thought to share what I learnt…..hmm blame it on laziness or my lil one 😀
Brinjal with peanuts and sesame sounds new and interesting! Guess this is my longest comment….:)
ummm…yeah you need to revive urself to get ur mojo back.:) I don't see your comment in my blog now and then. Come here and we'll have a great plans – go to beach, tanning, spa-massage with sipping cool summer drink!!! 😀 ~sigh~
Baghare baigan looks so mouth watering!:) Thanks for steps. 🙂
aah nice. and looks easy enuf to become a must-try. and abt feeling all keyed out, trust me, that bit has hit me too, so i just know that its lack of vacations, sleep, too much work and all else combined. go to phuket 🙂 and life will come rushing back in!