Vanga-Batatyachi bhaji

This CKP-style eggplant and potato bhaji is my Mother-in-law’s recipe. It uses her signature Vaatan (spice paste) that she uses in a lot of her cooking. She always has a jar of this in her fridge! It’s the same one she uses in prawn khichadi and Waalachi khichadi as well. this vaatan is also quite similar to what I use for my jackfruit sukka and mutton sukka recipes, just slightly different ratios of onion”coconut! Quite a versatile ingredient to have on hand, no need to mention its extremely delicious!

Even if I have to make the Vaatan just for this bhaji, its worth it though! The only difference from my MIL’s recipe is that she adds ‘Sode’ (dried prawns to hers) Its a CKP thing and I think you have to grow up with it to develop a taste for it, lol! I for one cannot stand the sight or smell of dried prawns. I have not allowed my husband to keep a jar of ‘sode’ in my (our) kitchen yet. We have a running bet of – if he manages to sneak in a jar in our pantry and I dont notice it (with the smell) for a week, he gets to keep it. He managed to win this bet in our kitchen in India, but I think its quite challenging to hide that smell in our pantry in the US, because of the lack cross ventilation here unlike India, as we are rarely able to keep doors and windows open!!

Anyway, back to the recipe – here’s your delicious vaangyachi bhaji without Sode!!

Serves about 4

You will need:

Eggplants – 2 large Annina eggplants OR 3-4 cali eggplants or 6-8 small eggplants of any varietu of your choice – ideally use eggplants that are white meat-y inside with minimal amount of seeds.

1 large potato – optional – I love the variety in texture it provides

1/3 cup of fried onions

1/4 cup of dried coconut

a good handful of cilantro leaves

3-4 (medium large) cloves of garlic

1-2 inches of ginger depending on thickness

Oil, turmeric, hing

jaggery, salt, red chilli powder

Cilanro for garnish

Procedure:

• Chop the eggplants in large cubes, as they cook very quickly and if cut too small, they will turn to mush
• Cut potatoes in smaller cubes as they take longer to cook

• Make the vaatan (spice paste) by grinding together – the fried onions, toasted coconut, ginger, garlic and cilantro. Add little water as needed to help with the grinding – avoid adding too much water

• Once everything is ready, heat about 2 tbsp oil in a non-stick pan.
• Once hot, add turmeric and hing. you can also add mustard seeds, I like to skip them in this bhaji
• Next add the vaatan paste and saute it until the raw smell goes away and the color changes slightly.

• Add the potato pieces and saute well, cover and cook just for about a minute
• Next add the eggplant pieces and mix until the masala coats the veggies uniformly. cover and cook for a few minutes
• Add about 1/2-1 tsp f red chilli powder, salt to taste and a little bit of jaggery – mix well
• Add a little bit of hot water about 1/4 cup, cover and cook until the vegetable pieces are cooked

• Serve piping hot garnished with cilantro with some Phulkas, bhakri or rice