This curry looks quite unappealing, but tastes terrific with rice, at least according to my son. Surprisingly he loves some traditional curries like this, beerakaya karam kura etc. One may think isn’t that normally to be expected in the home environment with my penchant for cookery. Not really because, growing up he was away in the boarding school where kids develop fancy tastes and change childhood preferences. He did, but also retained the taste for these.

Ingredients:

• White brinjal – 1/2 kg
• Chikkudi kayalu/ginjalu or soaked senagalu or fresh mochai – 1 cup
• Tomato – 2 medium (opt)
• Allam (ginger) – 1 inch square
• Green chilly – 5
• Tamarind paste – 1 tsp (add a tsp more if tomato not added)
• Curry leaves – a bunch
• Salt
• Turmeric – a pinch
• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Seasoning: mustard, chana dal, urad dal, red chilly, jeera

Method:

1. In a pressure cooker add brinjal cut into large pieces and the legume of choice – chana, broad beans, broad bean seeds or mochai. Add salt, turmeric and water and cook for 2, 3 whistles (until the legume cooks)
2. If using chikkudikaya, remove the ends and the fibre from sides. Open the pod and check for worms and then tear it into 2 inch pieces.
3. Grind ginger and green chilli toether into coarse mixture and keep ready.
4. In a kadai heat oil and add seasoning items one by one.
5. Once the dals are golden, add the ground mixture and curry leaves and saute for 2 minutes
6. Add chopped tomato and cook till it is mushy.
7. Drain water completely from the cooked mixture and add it to the kadai.
8. Mix, add tamarind pulp and cook for 5 minutes stirring.
9. Once water evaoprates and the curry comes together as a lump, turn off heat and keep covered until use.
10. Enjoy with hot rice and theeya (mukkala) pulusu or majjiga pulusu combination.

Note:

1. Choose tender but larger brinjals. If the brinjals are very tender, we can cook them stove-top, and just cook the legumes in the cooker.
2. If using chikkudikaya and they are tender too, no need to use a cooker.