Casey and I are lucky enough to live in a neighborhood where we are surrounded by delicious food. No joke, we have seven Thai restaurants within walking distance from our house. And when we get sick of Thai, we also have a delicious Indian restaurant just a few blocks away. I am notorious for always ordering the same thing – baingan bharta.
This is by no means the same thing, but it is a decent representation, and it’s deliciously tasty. If my husband wasn’t so against it, I would probably eat eggplant every single night. He’s not a huge eggplant fan, but he does love Indian food. And despite the eggplant base, he gobbled down his whole bowl along with the leftovers, so it’s safe to say that even an eggplant hater can be convinced with the right recipe. Perhaps this is just that!
Coconut Eggplant Bharta
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients (Serves 4)
- 2 eggplants, halved and roasted
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon whole cumin seed
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2 14oz can light coconut milk
- 1.5 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- brown rice (optional)
Instructions
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Start by cutting two medium eggplants in half lengthwise, and placing face up on a baking sheet. Roast at 450 degrees for 20 minutes, or until soft and browning on top.
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In the meantime, dice and begin to sauté one onion in coconut oil. Once the onion has softened, add cumin seed and garam masala and toast for 1 minute.
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Add coconut milk, tomato paste, and garlic.
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Once the eggplant has roasted, remove from oven and allow to cool for a minute or two. Carefully peel off the outer skin, and cube the softened eggplant flesh. Add to the pan with onions and coconut milk.
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Add frozen peas, cayenne pepper, and salt.
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Stir until peas are cooked and mixture is heated and combined. Adjust seasoning to taste.
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Serve over brown rice, and enjoy!
This was quick to make but full of flavor – the perfect meal when you’re looking for something warm and comforting, but still healthy and light.
Adding a little coconut oil to your rice is a fun way to enhance this meal with just a bit more flavor.
As always, enjoy!
41 Comments so far
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I’m not the biggest eggplant fan, either, but this looks fabulous. I think I’m putting this on my meal plan for next week. Thank you!
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THANK YOU! Eggplant bhartha is my favorite food to order at an Indian restaurant. This recipe sounds easy and delicious :)
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i LOVE eggplant. my husband — does not. may have to try and bridge the gap with this recipe!
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Mm, that looks really good, Emily! Eggplant is one of my favorite vegetables, and I haven’t cooked with one in ages. Glad to be reminded!
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Looks delicious! As a shortcut to roasting, I started microwaving eggplant. I also like to use it with the skin on for extra nutrients :)
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I have never been a huge Thai food or Indian food fan, but I haven’t experimented with either nearly enough because this looks delicious!
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I love baingan bharta and this looks delicious! Whenever I prepare eggplant it turns out bitter but maybe this dish will do the trick, I’ll have to give it a shot :)
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Mia Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 6:29 pm
I love baingan bartha too! Christina, I find that larger eggplants available at most grocery stores tend to be bitter; the Asian eggplant (slender ones) or baby eggplant tend to be less bitter. If you can only find the large ones though, you can slice them lengthwise or in large slices and sprinkle some salt on the cut sides, then let it sit for 10-15 minutes or so to draw out the bitter juices. You’ll actually see the juices coming out. Then I wipe it off with a towel. This usually does the trick for me!
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I feel the same way about eggplant, and baingan bharta. YUM. I can’t wait to try this recipe! Wonder if it would freeze well …
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Do you roast the eggplant dry or do you spray/brush it with oil before putting it in the oven?
This looks great – I will have to give it a try this weekend :)
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I’ve heard that Seattle is a great place for foodies! I have to admit that I’ve only ever had eggplant in eggplant parmesan I think! But I do love the flavor of it and this looks delicious. :)
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I cannot wait to make this! I have been finding so many new eggplant recipes. Guess it time to buy one!
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I had eggplant sandwiches once that my roomie made in college and it was a bitter, awful disappointment. Been too scared to try eggplant ever since. We don’t even have a Thai place close that doesn’t look really seedy and questionable. Maybe one day someplace new will open and I can try some real Thai cuisine.
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I am a HUGE eggplant fan, but have never tried Thai food before. I’ll have to try this recipe out!
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I love eggplant and am always in search of new ways to make it. This looks great! I’m adding the ingredients to the grocery list right now.
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Living somewhere where the closest Thai place is a 20 minute DRIVE, not walk, I kind of wanted to hate you a little when you said you have 7 places by you! ;)
I’m not a huge eggplant lover either but I bet I’d love this. Coconut milk makes everything delicious!
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I almost bought an eggplant today, but decided to wait until I found the perfect recipe… guess I should have bought it ;) thanks for sharing this, it looks AMAZING!
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This looks yummy :D
You are lucky to be surrounded by amazing ethnic choices…I LOVE thai food..pad thai is the best
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This looks delicious! I love the coconut milk in this recipe.
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My husband is the same way – not a huge eggplant fan, but he loves Indian food. Your recipe sounds awesome, and I like that the ingredient list is fairly short, especially since Indian food often requires so many spices.
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I’m with Casey on eggplant…. It’s just ok. I’d rather not. I might just try this recipe though because there are so many other yummy flavors going on!
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I’m with Casey on the eggplant thing, not my fave, although this does look good.
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Indian and thai are probably my favooorite (plus sushi) types of food <3
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I am determined to get my family to like eggplant…so excited to try this recipe!! :)
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This looks awesome! (and PS – Happy Birthday! Heard about it over on KERF ;) Hope it’s a great day!)
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Yum! We’re definitely on the fence about eggplant in our house. But this looks fantastic. I’ll definitely have to give it a try. Thanks!
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Looks awesome! I’ve been making all your Indian recipes lately! They are awesome. So excited to try this one.
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Happy Birthday Emily! I hope you have a wonderful day today. Your blog has been such a treasure to read as you weave your way through motherhood, you are amazing! ;-)
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Yummmm! Really on an eggplant kick right now, so thanks for the recipe idea!
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Saw on KERF that is your birthday today! Happy Birthday, Emily! :)
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This sounds aamzing! I wish I had better restuarants within walking distance. We have taco bell, Jack in the Box and Burger King! Yuck!!
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Hey, I hear its your birthday!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you have a lovely day as you celebrate the gift of another year of life! :) Smiles,
Ellen
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Yum! What Indian restaurant? I’ve been looking for a good one!
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Looks delicious! I’m impressed
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Thank you for the great recipe! I made this last night for my boyfriend and I and we both LOVED it! I had the leftovers for lunch and I’m wishing there was more left! I will def make this again. Easy, quick, and delicious! Thank you Emily :)
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Oh yum! I think I have a coconut oil sample that I should put towards this recipe! :)
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This is my favorite Indian dish and have been looking for a simple way to recreate it at home because some restaurants tend to have a lot of oil. I tried the frozen one at Trader Joe’s and didn’t love it, so I am excited to give this a try. I have frozen naan and rice all ready in my kitchen, so this should be an easy meal idea. Thanks for the great recipe.
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This looks delicious. I will definitely be trying it out!
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This was really good! However, getting the peel off the eggplant after roasting was next to impossible. Next time I’ll just peel it first. I added extra coconut milk and tomato paste.
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I really liked this! I left the skin on the eggplant, and I didn’t have coconut oil so used canola. It came out lovely, peppery hot and the peas were a great combo.
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We made this as part of our weekly Indian night and loved it, it was easy and delicious. Thanks so much!
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