Sometimes when a recipe is truly great, I find I have little to say other than “Make this.” So, if you like Indian food in general and Baingan Bharta in particular, make this. It’s as good as or better than what you’ll find in a restaurant but without a lot of oil or, possibly, butter and it’s certified delicious by my resident eggplant-hater.
Before you run off to the kitchen, let me admit that yes, I made baingan bharta and basically added chickpeas to it. Laziness is the reason, my usual desire to get vegetables and protein all into one dish so that I don’t have to make side dishes. In this case, I could have used some sides because this dish was so mouth-watering, so appetite-inducing, and yet so light that we were all three still hungry after we’d polished off the 4 average-sized servings. So plan to either double the recipe or make some side dishes. I suggest Red Cabbage and Peas with Cumin and Mustardseed, Baked Spinach Kofta, Palak Tofu, Bhindi Masala, or any of my Indian recipes.
Finally (boy, I just can’t shut up), I really need to point out that you can get all of the essential ingredients at almost any supermarket, but if you have an Indian grocery store nearby, you’ll be able to find asafetida and ginger paste there. Neither is a necessity, but I find the ginger paste to be a big time-saver, as well as a recipe-saver when all my fresh ginger root seems to have become dried up, gnarled, and downright scary in my fridge. You’ll also find fresher garam masala in an Indian store than you will in a supermarket, but not as fresh as if you make it yourself; see the end of the recipe for ingredients before you head out on your shopping trip.
Eggplant and Chickpea Curry
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1/2 red bell pepper seeded and diced
- 1 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/8 teaspoon asafetida (or 1 clove garlic, pressed)
- 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes (fire-roasted preferred)
- 2 teaspoons ginger paste or minced ginger root
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne or other hot red pepper (less or more, to taste)
- 1 15-ounce can (or 1 1/2 cups) cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup minced parsley or cilantro
- 1/4 teaspoon garam masala (start with less and add more to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Prick eggplant with a fork several times and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until eggplant is sunken and soft all the way through. Remove from oven and set aside until cool enough to handle. Peel and chop the eggplant flesh.
- Heat a non-stick skillet and then spray it lightly with vegetable oil. Add the onion and cook until it begins to turn golden. Add the bell pepper and cook for a few more minutes. Clear a spot in the center of the skillet and sprinkle the cumin seeds directly on the hot surface. Stir and toast them for about a minute, until they become fragrant. Stir them into the onions and peppers and add the coriander, turmeric, asafetida (or garlic), tomatoes, ginger paste, and red pepper. Add the eggplant and cook over medium heat, pressing eggplant with the back of a spoon to break up large pieces, for about 10 minutes. Add the chickpeas and enough water or chickpea cooking liquid to keep the mixture moist, cover tightly, and turn heat to low. Cook for at least 15 minutes, stirring periodically, until sauce has thickened and flavors have blended. (You can hold this dish on low for up to 45 minutes while you prepare the rest of your meal, but add additional liquid as needed and don’t forget to stir, scraping the bottom.)
- Just before serving, add parsley (or cilantro), garam masala, and salt to taste. Serve with rice or Indian bread.
Notes
I used freshly-made garam masala, which is more flavorful than most store-bought blends; depending on your spice blend, you may need to add more to get the right flavor. Garam masala recipes vary, but my current favorite is to combine 1 tablespoon black cardamom seeds, 1 cinnamon stick (about 2 1/2 inches long), 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon whole cloves, 1 teaspoon black peppercorns. Grind in coffee or spice grinder until powdered. Heat a small, dry pan. Add spices and toast just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl, and allow to cool. Once cool, store in a sealed jar for future use.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s) | Cooking time: 1 hour(s) 5 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 4
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 208 calories, 16 calories from fat, 1.9g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 548.5mg sodium, 634.6mg potassium, 41.7g carbohydrates, 11.6g fiber, 8.4g sugar, 8.3g protein, 3.5 points (not equivalent to Weight Watchers’ PointsPlus).
Copyright: Susan Voisin 2011. All rights reserved. Please do not repost recipes or photos to other websites.
Share This Recipe:
{ 109 comments… read them below or add one }
I am totally in love with simple Indian food recipes. I just recently started making them at home after having my first taste at the WF’s hot bar. This seems pretty straight forward and I love that it’s an ‘all inclusive’ meal… no need to dirty up other pots n pans to make side dishes.
I haven’t had eggplant in ages! Must try this recipe out next week… Adding this to my meal plan for next week ASAP.
Thanks Susan!
-Mary
Another great one. Thanks.
This looks delicious–and worthy of going with my Indian Auntie’s recipe for mint paratha. Can’t wait to try it out!
(And that bowl/dish set is gorgeous!)
This sounds delicious! I love indian curries and chickpeas in particular. My husband likes eggplant a lot, so this is something we’ll have to try! Thank you for sharing!
I love Indian Food!!!! It is the absolute BEST!!! Not only does it taste great, but it brings back memories of my mother traveling and visiting India. I can’t wait to try this and all of your other Indian dishes!!!
I Checked out your site thinking it was vegan. You have some very interesting recipes. Unfortunately, some recipes include eggs which would determine for me where I travel on the web in search of recipes. There is no evidence that humans require animals, their products or secretions in order to maintain a healthy body. The ongoing suffering that egg laying hens endure (including cage free) by having humans steal from their bodies cannot justify consumption of eggs, especially at a time in history where a variety of plant food is still readily available. Gifted vegan food authors like Susan show us how easy it is to create fresh, delicious, healthy meals and desserts minus the suffering of other sentient beings. The rest is up to us. Best wishes to you in your search for healthy eating.
Even though I may choose to use eggs in some of my dishes, my dishes can be effortlessly modified to suit vegans. Along with my recipes, I provide substitutions for vegetarians and vegans (like flax/chia eggs and Ener G egg replacer), so I hope you will try some of my dishes with the modifications I provide.
Susan,
This sounds absolutely fantastic! I LOVE garam masala, but have never made my own, so I might try that. And I loved the writing in the post, too–I am definitely putting this on my “make this” list!!
Thank you,
moonwatcher
I love using tumeric and ginger in my curry recipes!
I love asian food! Its so easy to make since most of it is dairy/egg free! Thanks for this great recipe, we’ll definitely try it next week!
thanks for the eggplant recipe. I have discovered eggplant this year and cannot get enough of it. Thanks for the email and the recipe.
Wow Susan, while the recipe looks great, I am in awe of the endless beautiful dished your food is always pictured in! You must have a gazillion! LOL
I don’t have cumin seeds. Would you have a suggestion for amounts of ground cumin, which I do already have? Likewise, no cinnamon sticks, but ground cinnamon, no cardamon seeds, but ground cardamon…
Use about a teaspoon of ground cumin in the curry and about 3/4 tsp. in the garam masala. Instead of a stick of cinnamon, use a teaspoon of ground. You can use about the same amount of cardamom as cardamon seeds (1 tbsp.) It probably won’t have quite the same punch as from freshly ground seeds, but will still be good.
This sounds absolutely delish! Can’t wait to try it.
I adore your plate and bowl, as someone else has said you seem to have an endless supply of gorgeous plates and dishes. Thank you once again for another fab recipe!
If it tastes as good as it looks in that great photo it will be fab!
xxx
combining chickpeas with the eggplants is a good idea… i love the photo and the write up for this post!
Veena
http://www.tastefullyveggie.blogspot.com
Indian food is often the same basic food made amazing with the most flavorful spices and herbs. For instance, chick peas as hummus which practically everybody loves with crackers; made with Indian spices this little pea takes on other celestial dimensions. Susan, showcasing your recipe in such gorgeous china tempts me to go shopping – perhaps in India someday.
This looks great! I recently found a really great eggplant dish after years of trying awful baingan bharta recipes. Still working on my post for it, though – you managed to take lovely pics of a dish that is not especially attractive, haha! Love your dishes.
This looks and sounds heavenly. I still haven’t tried garam masala in many recipes yet, so this gives me some ideas. That bowl and plate are gorgeous as well!
OMG that looks divine and your dishes are beautiful. I am a new reader! So glad Ifound your bloggie!
I love Indian food, and one dish meals are such a time saver, great idea!
love your work and just wondered if i could help out with the ginger situation. i used to keep mine in the fridge and have the same problem until i read a tip..sorry don’t remember where..but it’s as simple as keeping it in the freezer instead. it grates beautifully and now i never run out
as for the recipe..i too am an eggplant hater..however i keep buying it and trying it so i’ll definitely give this one a bash.
I am so glad I have all the ingredients on hand. I think this is going to be lunch or dinner. Thank you, Susan!
Hey, Susan!
Another great recipe I will be trying! BTW, I loaded the info into WW’s points calculator, according to the new PointsPlus® program, and it’s 5, which is not bad, just FYI.
Keep up the good cookin’!
Thanks for doing that, Maria. I wonder why it’s so high. I thought WW was allowing unlimited vegetables now, and except for the chickpeas, this is pretty much all vegetables. I would have thought it would have fewer points than the old program, not more.
Hi Susan,
There’s not much sense in comparing the old to the new WW program in terms of the PointsPlus values of individual foods or dishes— the whole program is reworked, so we have higher targets too. I find, on a vegan diet at least, that it all amounts to about the same amount of food in the end as I was eating on the older plan– the values and the targets are just different. Hope that helps explain. This dish sounds delicious!
Will try making this one tomorrow for our weekly Curry Night! I always love your curries and spicy dishes so thanks Susan plus I am in a very chilly England so will enjoy something comforting to warm us up.
Tip for you regarding Root Ginger. I freeze chunks of fresh ginger which I then take out and grate with a microplane grater and it works a treat (often easier than when it is fresh). If you leave it to thaw it will be much softer and mushy so grate it when still frozen. Plus you don’t have to peel it either.
How perfect – and perfectly beautiful – are those gorgeous dishes for this dish?! They caught my eye even before the delectable-looking food did, which almost never happens!
This recipe’s going in my recipe box. I have been wanting to cook more Indian food. We love it, and don’t make it nearly enough! And after a traumatic experience once with an eggplant gone bad I haven’t made anything with eggplant since, not even my beloved baba ganouj. This recipe will help me get over it. Thank you for adding it to our repertoire!
Oh I am so excited. I ate at a fantastic Vegan Indian restaurant last night and after eating their wonderful food I really wanted to make more for myself. Thank you for making my wishes come true! I can’t wait to try it!
You are my hero! I had leftover eggplant from the Morrocan meat pies that I made this weekend for the carnivore in my house and was wondering what I was going to do with it. Can’t wait to make this tomorrow!
I too am not a huge fan of eggplant, but I LOVE it in Baingan Bharta. I always order this when we go for Indian food, but I would much rather make my own…great recipe
Unbelievably and addictingly delicious, as ususal, Susan. Thank you again!
On points plus, this recipe is 5 points
I love eggplant! I love chick peas! I love Indian food!
I am so making this.
And your photos are a delight! Thank you!
I forgot to mention–I keep fresh ginger root in a ziplock baggie in my freezer. It never goes bad before I can use it up, is as good as fresh ginger, is easy to microplane and I always have fresh ginger on hand!
Thanks, Wendy! It sounds like freezing my ginger is definitely in my future!
Your pictures are better than ever, Susan! Beautiful!
I will have to make this dish when my husband comes home this weekend. He will be thrilled. We love Indian and Baingan Bharta is one of our favorites.
Wow this was fantastic! Theres nothing like a spicy bowl of chickpeas and eggplant curry to warm you up on a winter night. I will definitely be making this again! It was easy, quick, and inexpensive to make since I already had all the spices. For all of you who have not yet tried this, you must!
Hi Susan,
This sounds like a great recipe. The flavour of roasted eggplant is unbeatable.
If you want to try a store bought garam masala from any Indian store, try the Sanjeev kapoor brand if you can get it. I have tried the garam masala from this brand and its really strong and flavourfull.
thanks,
pb
Looks delicious! I love chickpea curry!
Thank you for the recipe. My husband loves the baingan bharta at our local Indian restaurant, but I don’t like all the oil floating on top! I made this tonight and it was delicious
The eggplant and chickpea curry was so tasty that I plan to go back and check out your other Indian recipes. I can always count on FFV for recipes that my husband will enjoy. Thanks.
We made this last night and really enjoyed it. Since we had roasted the eggplant the night before while doing some other baking, the recipe came together in no time! I couldn’t believe how good it was without salt. Thanks!
This was delicious!! It reminded me of an Indian dish I ordered out recently that was extremely oily. This one tasted just as good if not better. My husband does not like eggplant but you’ve provided me with yet another recipe he has devoured no problem. I realized halfway through making this that I was out of chickpeas so I subbed pinto beans and it turned out fine. Had this a dinner one night and served as an appetizer dip with pita chips the next night.
Love Indian food but i don’t cook it enough. This sounds like a great recipe. Also i am new to your site and love it.
I made this on Monday, and it barely lasted to Tuesday. I did add an extra dash of curry powder and some lemon juice, and it was superb! I love me some curry Susan! Thank you once again! (I’m sure you get tired of hearing that)
-Bert
Ha, never! Thanks for the feedback, Bert! I’m so glad you liked it.
I must say, I made this dish and it was DIVINE!!!
THANK YOU SUSAN!
This looks soooo YUM! Love the crockery..Is that a tea cup you served it in?
Cheers,
Zenobia
@Raw_Vegan_Girl
Thanks! No, not a teacup–just a small bowl.
I love ur blog. thanks.
I just made this and this is fantastic. My hubby proclaimed this is one of the best Indian dishes he’s eaten. We love Indian and Mediterranean dishes. THANK YOU! This is going to added to our regularly made recipes….well, basically anthing off of your site can be considered that!
I tried this recipe over the weekend, and we absolutely loved it. It is spectacular. We also loved the Bok choy and Baked Tofu with quinoa. I very much enjoy your blog and find myself returning to it again and again for recipe ideas.
Hi: My first visit to your blog, but won’t be my last. Lovely pictures. Very clever idea to add chickpeas to baingan bharta to make the dish more hearty.
One question: why parsley? That’s not an Indian ingredient at all. Definitely use cilantro! Thanks! S
I don’t like cilantro so I never use it. I present it as an optimum because it’s traditional, but if I actually put it in the dish, I couldn’t eat it. Tastes like soap!
What an unfortunate affliction, to imagine that cilantro tastes like soap – I guess you know what soap tastes like
That really cuts the enjoyment of Indian, Mexican, Thai, etc food.
Anyhow, instead of parsley, which does not at all go with the flavor profile of Indian food, you could instead recommend finely chopped Thai basil. A much better match.
It’s not “imagination,” but a genetic trait that many of us have. Instead of parsley or thai basil (which most people don’t have), people who don’t like cilantro can just leave it out.
I’ve read that celery leaves also make a good cilantro substitute, since they taste a lot like cilantro to people who do like it, and they also taste good to people who don’t.
Thanks, Dyan, that’s good to know. I’ve always wondered what cilantro tastes like, but I’ve never heard a very good description. When it tastes like soap to you, it’s very hard to imagine it tasting like anything else!
I second that, Susan! Soapy cilantro is not my imagination! And science agrees: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/14/dining/14curious.html
Can’t stand the stuff but my family loves it so I have been trying to sneak it into my own food in small doses. It doesn’t make me gag like it used to, but still not a fan.
Mmm. I only had cumin seeds in my panch phoran mix, so rather than separate them out i just used the panch phoran. A success, for sure. Thanks, Susan! (I should really thank you twice because you’re the reason i have panch phoran on hand, too. So, thanks again!)
I laughed when I read that you ate the whole recipe. We always serve curries over rice, then it might last for the servings listed. I agree, it is very tasty. Thanks for all the work you go to and share with us. My husband thinks I am a great cook thanks to your sharing.
Love the eggplant, and especially not using the oil that is too often smothering it!! I have been making eggplant in the slow cooker, which works great because it breaks itself down, creating the liquid needed to cook it. Great to see healthy vegan food!!
I doubled this recipe for my family by using twice as much eggplant and chickpeas but then forgot to double up on the spices so it came out quite bland. I also used ground cumin instead of seeds and didn’t have asefetida so that may have also hindered the flavor. I will try again following the recipe correctly lol.
This is delicious! A new favorite. Thanks for sharing.
Keep ginger root in the freezer. When you need it, just scrape skin off with a paring knife and grate it up on the fine grater. It lasts forever in there and you’ve always got fresh ginger handy.
Thanks! Someone else suggested this and I’ve been doing it ever since. It’s a real money-saver!
I absolutely love your recipes! And furthermore, your pictures are excellent. This is somewhat unique for vegan recipe websites, it’s very seldom that I find such an excellent resource. I just wanted to thank you and let you know how awesome this blog is. Good luck & best wishes
Kerstin
Thank you for the kind words, Kerstin! I love doing it!
I have been craving curried eggplant lately! This looks amazing =)
Thank you! Have a glut of eggplant from the garden and will definitely try this!
Great dish, I love curry and chickpeas are one of my fav beans.
Ok this receipe looks delicious!!!! but one random question- where did you get those dishes in the picture? they’re beautiful !
That’s a pattern called Kashmir by Noble Excellence. I bought them at Dillards, but I think you can probably get them in other department stores, too. I got lucky and found them on sale.
I made this in the crockpot and it turned out great!
I first sauteed the onions and spices. (For some reason I dislike the taste of onions cooked from raw in a crockpot. They’re weird, right? Or is that just me?) Then just chopped up the rest, gave it a stir and cooked it overnight on low.
I skipped the parsley and added the Garam Masala in the morning.
Fantastic!
I keep fresh ginger in the freezer and chop of a chunk or grate as needed. Much better than bottled and last a long time.
Made this for supper tonight – DIVINE!! Thanks for your blog – we’re really enjoying the recipes.
I made this dish last night and it is absolutely fabulous. I have two suggestions: add 3/4 tsp of salt, and cut the cayenne by half. I served it over brown rice. Really terrific. I would love more Indian recipes like this one.
I was able to locate all seeds to make homemade garam masala EXCEPT cardamom…I have the powder of that and the rest of the ingridients so do you have an already grounded alternative to this recipe?
Just use two teaspoons of ground cardamom and it should be fine.
I don’t have the cumin seeds either
how much powder would I use?
Use 1 tsp. cumin seeds in both the main recipe and in the garam masala.
Great recipe! One change I’d make is to use fresh rather than canned tomatoes. I find that with Indian recipes, using canned tomatoes tends to give the dish too tomato-ey a flavor.
Just made this…. had some small eggplants from a coworkers garden and this worked wonderfully (even if the smaller eggplants were a bit harder to work with then one large one would have been).
My wife and I both loved it, and even our three year old ate some without complaint (I did not add any hot pepper to the dish while it was cooking).
Made this tonight and I loved it. Served it over rich with a side of Garlicky Greens and roasted beets. My husband doesn’t like chickpeas or eggplant, but he still said it was good and would eat it again, I loved it and will definately make it again.
Susan, I want to make this, but have Japanese eggplant growing in my garden. How many do you think I should use to make 1 large eggplant?
Also, my lemon grass is growing nicely in my garden. I planted it so I could try your Thai Green Curry recipe since we don’t have an Asian marker here. Do you remember how much volume or weight that 3 stalks equals out to?
Thanks so much!!!
It’s just a guess, but depending on the size of your Japanese eggplants, 3 or 4 will probably equal 1 large one. It’s a pretty forgiving recipe, so I wouldn’t worry too much about getting it exact.
And I’m also not sure about the lemongrass–maybe 4 to 6 ounces?
I wish I were growing lemongrass but I haven’t found any here yet.
Okay, great! I saw another recipe for eggplant curry and yours looks so much more flavorful. I should be able to make it tomorrow. I have 4 eggplants ready to pick.
And thanks for the weight estimate for the lemon grass. I’m so sorry you can’t find it there. I bought mine in the spring so maybe that’s when they have it in stock.
An article online says that you can purchase lemon grass from an Asian Market and root it in water and once the roots are 2 inches long you can plant it in the ground or in a pot.
Here’s the link in case you’re interested. http://www.easytogrowherbs.com/Growing-Lemon-Grass.html
Thanks so much for the link! I’ll check it out and see if it’s too late to plant it here.
For the green curry recipe, I used lemon grass that had been trimmed to fit into a 5- or 6-inch long package in the grocery store. I think I still needed to remove some outer leaves, so 4-6 ounces may be on the high side. I wish I’d thought to weigh it before I added it! Please let me know how it comes out.
I made this tonight and it was great! I went a bit nontraditional and ate it over shirataki noodles just to make the meal a bit lighter, but it worked. I also added fresh, diced jalapenos.
My husband is normally very suspicious of eggplant, but he liked it as well.
You said, “Make this!”
I said, “Okay!”
I’m so glad we both said what we said. This is DELICIOUS! I followed the recipe to the letter, except I found once I got home from the grocery that my garlic was too dry, so I subbed garlic powder. My car smelled so good from the bulk garam masala I picked up at my local co-op…I knew I would love this recipe. It has such a nice balance of heat, brightness, body, and lightness.
I’m looking forward to trying more recipes from your blog!
So glad you listened to me!
I’m willing to be you’re not as glad as me and my tummy are right now.
Can I substitute ground ginger for ginger paste?
You could add about 1/2 tsp. along with the other dry spices.
I love your site. This recipe looks great but I really wanted to comment on the gorgeous dishes!
I freeze my fresh ginger as is and then take it out and grate it with a rasp. Perfectly fresh!
This is a great recipe. My wife and I enjoyed it very much. We had it over brown basmati rice. I told my wife a few weeks ago I was going to make a chick-pea recipe once a week until I can’t find any more I like and then I’ll start using the same ones over. This one definitely will be repeated.
Wow! This was so good! Easy and the favors were fantastic! So glad I found this site Susan….you are a genius in the kitchen. I spent all day Saturday making 4 of your recipes and they simply blew me away. I also made your eggplant parm, the gabbage dish you mentioned above and the creamy creole eggplant casserole!
Just made this last night- was delicious- and so healthy! Thanks for posting!
I made this for dinner tonight. The eggplant pretty much disappeared into the dish but it was delicious! Even my almost-8-year-old son liked it, but he is an abnormally good eater. We’ll make it again.
I LOVE the eggplant and chickpea curry recipe! I’m making it for the 3rd Sunday in a row. Do you have any recommendations on how to shorten the cooking time? The eggplant takes quite a long time to cook. Do you think replacing it with thinly sliced squash would yield a similar result (cooking it in the skillet with the red pepper)?
Thank you for your blog! I have loved all the recipes I’ve tried, and it has made being vegan a bit easier!
Peace and Love,
Lisa
I found this to be better on the second night after reheating, and with a spoon of miso stirred in after cooking was completed.
Presentation of this eggplant and chickpea curry is beautiful will go out tomorrow and get ingredients . Be back to you with results.
Very good! Could be made for guests! I recommend putting the chickpeas in with the tomatoes as I thought they were a little hard. Another option would be to crush them lightly before putting them in.
This is the second time making this! It is so delicious.thank you
Great recipe. I didn’t know you could cook an eggplant whole in the oven, then the skin falls off & you are left with delicious moist flesh. I have only ever drowned eggplants in oil to cook them. I’m so happy to have stumbled across your website. I look forward to continuing my cooking education with you!
very nice recipe,i love indian food its the best
i always tinker with recipes so this was no exception
added
2tbl tomato paste to sweeten
10 curry leaves and 3 tsp curry powder
10 cardomom pods
1tsp fenugreek seed and 1 tsp fennel seed
2 veg bulllion cubes
im sure it changed everything but it was a big hit with the vegan in the family
It’s just amazing..
I added few zuccini, but they were mismatch..
It was sooo delicious thank you!
{ 16 trackbacks }