Khatte Meethe Brinjal is a delicious curry made with small brinjals in sweet and sour flavours. It is an easy and quick side dish which pairs so well with dal rice combo and Ajwain parathas.
It is a No onion No garlic dish and can be consumed on days when people abstain from onion and garlic in their meals.
If you love brinjals/eggplants do try this delicious side dish which is Vegan, Gluten-free(friendly). A short video explaining the process is in the recipe card.
About the Recipe
Khatte Meethe Baingan is a easy to make side dish with small eggplants in spices like fennel seeds, nigella seeds in sweet and tangy flavours. This eggplant recipe is of North Indian origin and is now popular throughout India.
Khatta means Sour/Tangy and Meethe is sweet. The dish is loaded with sweet and sour flavours from jaggery and dry mango powder/tamarind respectively.
Eggplants are rich in iron, phytonutrients and fibre. Many people do not like eggplants but there are many who are hardcore eggplant lovers.
Try this flavourful eggplant recipe for your meals and serve it with your meals and is also good to have on it's own!!
Key Ingredients to make Khatte Meethe Baingan
Baby Eggplants- In India eggplants are also known as brinjals. I prefer baby eggplants for the recipe. You can take big eggplant and chop in small pieces also, if you are not able to source the small ones. Choose bright purple and spot free brinjals.
Tomato- Adds a sour/tangy taste.
Spices- A combination of spices add so much of aroma and give a characteristic taste to the curry. Spices like cumin seeds, fennel seeds,fenugreek seeds, coriander powder, jaggery and dry mango powder, red chilli whole and powder are used in the recipe. tamarind water adds the tangy taste to the dish. You can add Amchur/Dry mango powder or even lemon if dry mango is not available to you.
Oil- In North India we use mustard oil to make this vegetable. You can use any other plant oil like rice bran, peanut or corn oil to make it.
How to make Khatte Meethe Baingan
There are different ways in which people make this curry. Many keep it semi dry and many people make it with light gravy. To add the sour flavour we add tamarind in the recipe, but many people also add amchur.
To make the dish we cut brinjal/eggplant quarterly(4 slices). Many people like to keep the stalk and make slits in eggplant.
Keep the eggplant slices in salted water else the slices with turn dark.
Puree tomatoes and coarsely crush green chilli and ginger.
Prepare tamarind water- Soak small ball of tamarind in 1/4 cup lukewarm water for about 10 mins. Then rub it to take out the pulp. Add as required. Or, take 1 tsp tamarind paste, mix it with 1/4 cup water and add to the subzi.
Prepare Eggplants before making masala- You can deep fry eggplant slices or pan fry in light oil. You can also lightly oil the slices and bake or air fry. Many times I simply add the slices in tomato masala without frying.
Now make tomato masala with spices and add eggplants.
Cook till the subzi for 5 mins. till the masala coats nicely to the slices. Or, eggplants are tender and soft(when adding without frying).
Garnish with chopped coriander and serve with rotis or dal rice.
Shelf life
The curry stays good for about 2-3 days when refrigerated properly. Refrigerate in an airtight container. Reheat in microwave or in a pan on stove.
I never freeze it so can't suggest or comment on freezing it.
Serving Suggestions
This eggplant dish goes so well with dal tadka and steamed rice. I also love to pair it with Ajwain Paratha/Methi Paratha or simple ghee chapati with any raita.
Recipes with Brinjal/Eggplant/Aubergine
Eggplant is used all over the world in making curries, dips, side dishes. It is widely used in Mediterranean, Chinese and American cuisine also. In India we make different dishes with brinjal depending taste and preferences of people in different states and regions.
Few Indian Recipes from the blog with Eggplant
Baingan Ka Bharta, Beguni, Dahiwale Baingan, Air Fryer Baingan Bhaja, Bharwan Baingan and Aloo Baingan.
In South Indian Cuisine, Brinjal Rice(Vangi Bhath) is a very popular rice preparation and I just love it. Will soon update recipes here.
Recipe Card For Khatte Meethe Baingan
Khatte Meethe Baingan
Equipment
- Pan/Kadhai
- Knife
- Chopping Board
- Bowl
Ingredients
- 6-7 Baby Eggplants
- ½ Cup Tomato Puree or 1-2 tomatoes
- 1-2 Green Chillies
- ½" Ginger piece
- 1 Whole Dry Red Chillies
- ½ tsp Cumin Seeds
- ¼ tsp Fenugreek Seeds(Methi Dana)
- ¼ tsp Fennel Seeds
- 1-2 tsp Coriander Powder
- ½ tsp Kalonji(Onion Seeds)
- ½ tsp Turmeric Powder
- ½-1 tsp Red Chilli Powder or as required
- 2 tbsp Tamarind Water (check notes)
- 1-2 tsp Jaggery Powder or as required
- 2+2 tbsp Mustard Oil
Instructions
- Wash brinjals nicely.
- Cut the stalks and the slice the eggplants in four parts depending on the size of eggplant.6-7 Baby Eggplants
- Take water in a bowl and keep eggplant slices in it.
- Coarsely crush ginger and green chillies.1-2 Green Chillies, ½" Ginger piece
- Heat 2-3 tbsp oil in kadhai/pan.2+2 tbsp Mustard Oil
- Shallow fry brinjals till soft and tender.
- Take out and keep aside in a plate/dish.
- Add some more oil if required.
- Add dry chilli, cumin seeds when it crackles, add onion seeds, fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds, and saute for a few seconds. Keep the flame to low.1 Whole Dry Red Chillies, ½ tsp Cumin Seeds, ¼ tsp Fenugreek Seeds(Methi Dana), ¼ tsp Fennel Seeds, 1-2 tsp Coriander Powder, ½ tsp Kalonji(Onion Seeds)
- Add tomato puree, ginger and chilli and cook till the puree starts to dry.½ Cup Tomato Puree, 1-2 Green Chillies, ½" Ginger piece
- Add all the powdered spices and cook for few seconds.½ tsp Turmeric Powder, ½-1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
- Now add tamarind water and jaggery powder and mix nicely2 tbsp Tamarind Water, 1-2 tsp Jaggery Powder
- Cook masala again for few seconds.
- Now add the shallow fried eggplant slices and salt.
- Lightly mix to coat the slices in tomato masala.
- Cook for about 1-2 mins. Do not overcook
- Add ¼ cup water if you want gravy like consistency. I like to keep it semi dry.
- Serve hot with Dal Rice/Khichdi/Paratha/Poori or make it a part of vegetarian Thali menu.
Video
Notes
Do try this delicious recipe with eggplants. You can make it for everyday meals and even include in festive meal menu with pooris and paratha.
Also, whenever you try the recipe, I will love to hear/share your feedback or any queries in the comment section below. I will try to answer your queries as soon as possible.
A small request, please rate the recipe as per your experience or feedback. Your feedback and ratings help my site in more google visibility and higher google ratings.
Say Hello!! and visit my social media accounts.. FB, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter and You-Tube.
If you like my work, then add you mail id in the box below and HIT the SUBSCRIBE button to get notifications on new posts and share the blog with your loved ones.
Thanks for stopping by!! Keep coming back!!
Swati
Leave a Reply