A nice weekend just went by and we are back to the grind, and I am already hoping today was a Friday :-(. Anyways, no more Monday blues , lets go back to the weekend and tell you all about it.
Its been bloody hot in Mumbai, and finally rain Gods have shown some mercy and monsoon is hit Mumbai. I remember i moved here last year exactly in June and experienced my first brush with Mumbai rains. To say the least , it indeed is beautiful and at the same time dreadful, with bad ass traffic and water logging.By the time its October, it gets on to your nerves , your clothes take days to dry and its all soggy and a weird feeling. Oh Yes!!!!! your electronic equipments go for a toss.But you know what , Just walk out one day into the rains , to Marine Drive or the Worli Sea Face, or Juhu, Or even our very own beach near 7 Bungalows. One walk and you will forgive all the above mentioned vices. Its heavenly , to just stand with your arms spread , your eyes closed and soak in the feeling of those constant drops of water soaking your body. Its Divine.
I guess i got carried away :-), coming back to the weekend, Friday was chill, just sitting at home and drinking. I have a friend who has just moved from Delhi to Mumbai and is staying over. We had planned to go out for a film but Smita , ya that's her name, backed out and said she just wanted to chill at home. we chatted and slept really late and consequently woke up only at 4pm the next day! The weather was cloudy and i had an instant urge to eat Mutton, so we went out and got some, in the process felt the first few drops of Mumbai rains. Now, i have this habit of never buying small quantities of Meat. I generally buy whatever parts that i want and then get it weighed. That way i get the appropriate type of pieces that i want to serve. Moreover, left overs are always welcome and serve as my lunch for the next few days to office.
The recipe for the same is already listed.
Kanpuriya aka Priyanka is a really old and dear friend and she was due to come home for a really long time. So I was glad it was finally happening. She did ask me if she could get Tom, and I was more than happy to welcome him. Tom happens to be a German and the menu was all Indian so I was a little skeptical, but then what the hell, I thought the least he would be is sporting enough to at least try the food and boy sporting he was, and I shall get to that later.
Sunday was when the lunch was,and like I told you earlier I don't by mutton miserly,hence I had enough to serve for lunch. Now all I had to do was a veg side dish and a peas pulao. There was of course a spicy dhaniya(coriander ) chutney, and a kachumbar to enhance the food. Priyanka had promised to get some wine and I shamelessly had asked her to get 2 bottles :-). It began to pour by the time she was to arrive with Tom , and the mood was absolutely set for good lunch, with friends and wine of course.
What I did for the veg side was an aubergine curry served with a curd garnish. I will be honest here, I was never a huge fan of aubergine my self but this friend from Calcutta had called me for dinner once in Delhi and her mother had made this dish and insisted that I try. Trust me it blew my mind away. She was generous enough to share the recipe and I have fed a lot of my friends that and they all have loved it. Hence sharing it. This one is a must try guys. Here is how you make a simple aubergine absolutely exotic.Its been bloody hot in Mumbai, and finally rain Gods have shown some mercy and monsoon is hit Mumbai. I remember i moved here last year exactly in June and experienced my first brush with Mumbai rains. To say the least , it indeed is beautiful and at the same time dreadful, with bad ass traffic and water logging.By the time its October, it gets on to your nerves , your clothes take days to dry and its all soggy and a weird feeling. Oh Yes!!!!! your electronic equipments go for a toss.But you know what , Just walk out one day into the rains , to Marine Drive or the Worli Sea Face, or Juhu, Or even our very own beach near 7 Bungalows. One walk and you will forgive all the above mentioned vices. Its heavenly , to just stand with your arms spread , your eyes closed and soak in the feeling of those constant drops of water soaking your body. Its Divine.
I guess i got carried away :-), coming back to the weekend, Friday was chill, just sitting at home and drinking. I have a friend who has just moved from Delhi to Mumbai and is staying over. We had planned to go out for a film but Smita , ya that's her name, backed out and said she just wanted to chill at home. we chatted and slept really late and consequently woke up only at 4pm the next day! The weather was cloudy and i had an instant urge to eat Mutton, so we went out and got some, in the process felt the first few drops of Mumbai rains. Now, i have this habit of never buying small quantities of Meat. I generally buy whatever parts that i want and then get it weighed. That way i get the appropriate type of pieces that i want to serve. Moreover, left overs are always welcome and serve as my lunch for the next few days to office.
Susmita Aunty's aubergine with a curd garnish.
What you need:
Small aubergine (baigan)12-15
1 tsp cumin (Jeera) seeds
1 tsp Nigella Seeds( kalongi/mangrail)
1 tsp Carom Seeds (Ajwain)
1 tsp Fennel Seeds (saunf)
1/2 tsp Asafoetida (hing)
1 tbsp Coriander powder (Dhaniya)
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tsp Chat Masala.
1/2 tsp Turmeric (Haldi)
250 Gms Curd
1 Tbsp Sugar
salt to taste.
Garnish with fresh coriander.
How its done.:
Chop off the stem of the Aubergine, and chop each into 4 pieces not smaller than that. Sprinkle some salt and red chilli powder on it. Mix well and let be for say 10 -15 minutes. Take a kadhai / or a non stick pan, add some oil to it and once the oil is hot add Cumin seeds, Nigella seeds, Carom Seeds, Fennel Seeds and Asafoetida all at once. When it starts to sizzle add the aubergine along with all the salt and chilli and stir well so that its coated with all the spices in the pan. Now add the coriander , turmeric and the chat masala, add one cup of water stir again and cover and cook on a low flame. Keep checking in between, if you feel its getting dry, you can always add water in small quantity. Cook till its done.
While its cooking, take the curd and beat it well , use a fork its really convenient. Add the sugar and the salt to balance. Keep beating it so that the sugar dissolves. Add a pinch of red chilli powder mix well and keep it in the fridge. The curd should be really cold.
Once the aubergine is cooked , shouldn't take more that 15 -20 minutes, take it out in your serving dish. The gravy should not be too runny. Just a nice thick consistency with all the spices you have added. top this with the curd and serve immediately.
Note :
- Its very important the you don't mash the aubergine while stirring. It should cook but keep its shape.
- You can play around with the chilli and chat masala as per your taste. If you like it spicy or Tangy, its your call.
- Do add water as it helps the spices to blend with each other and also facilitates the cooking process. But please , when its done the gravy should not be runny or you will not get the desired layers of aubergine and curd. it will all mix up. If you feel that the gravy is too runny when the aubergine is done just uncover and increase the flame and stir gently. the water will dry up and you can get the consistency that you want.
- The trick for serving this dish in the best possible way is that the aubergine should be pipping hot and the curd ice cold.
It was still pouring post lunch so Smita and I volunteered to drop them home , but not before we stopped for a coffee at Costa, to sit out in the rain and just watch the beauty of it.
I also did a peas pulao, kachumbar, and spicy chutney. Will just let you know in a bit how it shaped up.
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