Eggplant and Tomato Bharta - Baigan Bharta

If kids and cooking were my mom's first love, gardening was a close second. I can't remember a time when my mom didn't grow vegetables. She started with tomatoes that she grew in pots on the patio. She would crowd in several containers in a sunny spot in our backyard. Soon, she was growing more and more vegetables, and the patio was not big enough. My mom finally built a large garden that took up a good part of our backyard. It had raised beds in a geometric pattern and even a bench where she could sit and look over what was growing. She grew almost anything, tomatoes, so many different varieties, cucumbers, peppers, chilis, Indian squash, raspberries, eggplant, blueberries, methi spinach. She even bought a grapevine to grow grapes on the garden fence.

She soon had so many vegetables that she didn't know what to do with. My mom would have friends come over to pick what they wanted and she would give tomatoes to neighbors. She tried her hand at pickling vegetables too. And while I was in college, I would get care packages, overflowing with ripe summer vegetables. I would come back from class to find a box of vegetables waiting for me.

She would walk out to her garden first thing in the morning, gently helping a drooping plant with a stake or pulling a stray weed. She would spend hours and hours each day, making sure every vegetable was growing well. And each summer she would try to grow more and more fruit and vegetables. It was always a challenge for her to grow something new.

So summer always reminds me of gardens and delicious homegrown vegetables. Baingan bharta is a great summer dish. I grew up with it as baingan ka bhurtha, the Hindi or Urdu term for it. Baingan, or eggplant, bharta is made with eggplant, tomatoes, and other summer vegetables. It's like a vegetable stew or "curry." It is made very similarly to baba ganoush. It's a great way to use all the summer vegetables available now. Eggplant is a key ingredient. And summer eggplant is wonderful. For baingan bharta, the eggplants are typically roasted and then cooked with cumin, fenugreek, and fresh cilantro. Finally, a bhagar or temper with curry leaves adds another layer of flavor.

Serve Bhaigan bharta with rice or roti. It also makes for a nice dip to serve with crackers. The dish originated in Punjab, and the eggplants are characteristically roasted. In the south of India, in Tamil Nadu, the vegetables are simmered and then mixed with spices. My mom growing up in Madras, in the heart of Tamil Nadu, always simmered hers.

Over the last few weeks, I have made Baingan bharta both ways. In the North Indian style, I roasted the vegetables, the eggplant, onions, zucchini, and tomatoes. I tweaked it a little bit by roasting not just the eggplant but all the vegetables. The result was delicious, a smoky vegetable stew that has a lovely balance of spices.

The second way I simmered the vegetables gently with cumin and fenugreek, and fresh cilantro. It, too, came out great, but different. It was more vegetal and summery and perhaps a little more straightforward. I love both ways and have included both versions in the recipe below. Try them both and see what you like!

Tomato and Eggplant Bharta - Baingan Bharta

Tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini are simmered gently to make a cross between Baba Ganoush and a vegetable stew. A few spices and curry leaves add a hint of spice. The vegetables can also be roasted either in the oven or on the grill to make a more smoky dish. And you can also mix up summer vegetables to use what you have on hand. If you can't find curry leaves, you can substitute bay leaves, or lime zest. In a pinch, basil can also work, it will add an herbal note to the dish too. Both are delicious.

• 4 medium tomatoes
• 2 zucchini
• 1 small eggplant
• 1 medium onion
• 1 small green chili pepper
• 2 teaspoons tamarind pulp
• 1 cup cilantro (chopped)
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (roasted)
• 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (roasted)
• 2 teaspoons salt

For the bhagar

• 1 large stem curry leaves or 3 red chilies
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil

1. In a medium skillet, gently toast the cumin and fenugreek seeds for about 3-5 minutes. Stir frequently, they do tend to burn easily. Grind in a mortar and pestle.
2. If Roasting, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Quarter the eggplant and zucchini lengthwise. Halve the tomatoes and onions. Place the vegetable on an oiled baking sheet and roast for 25 minutes until the vegetables are soft and a little blackened on the edges. Let them cool and then roughly chop the vegetables.

3. If on the stove top, roughly chop the tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini and onions. In a medium saucepan, add the vegetables, tamarind, cilantro and cumin and fenugreek seeds and salt. Over medium heat, bring to a boil and then simmer on low/medium heat for 20-25 minutes until the vegetables and soft.

4. After the vegetables are done, in a medium saucepan, add the vegetables, tamarind, cilantro, cumin and fenugreek and salt. Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes. You may need to add 1/4 cup water so the vegetables don't stick.
5. Place the cooked vegetables in a blender and blend for 30 seconds. You want it to be a course mash, not a puree.
6. Meanwhile make the bhagar. In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the curry leaves or red chilis. If you don't have curry leaves on hand, the red chilis add a smoky heat. Saute quickly for 30 seconds. I sometimes step back a little as this tends to sputter. Quickly add the vegetable mash in and simmer 5-10 minutes.
7. Serve warm or room temperature with roti or rice.

Tamarind pulp can be purchased in Indian or Asian grocery stores or Amazon. It's available in a dry block form which is dried. This can be soaked in hot water for 15 minutes or so and then squeeze to get the tamarind pulp. You can also purchase tamarind concentrate in a bottle. I use Tamicon and a little goes a long way.