Chickpeas Brinjal Tamarind Curry

Ingredients:

• Chickpeas – 1/2 cup
• Brinjal – 1
• Onion – 1 small
• Tomato – 1
• Tamarind – small gooseberry size
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 tspn
• Hing – 3 to 4 pinches
• Chili powder – 1/2 tspn
• Masala powder/ Sambar powder – 1 to 2 tspn
• Jaggery – a small pinch
• Salt – to taste
• Gingelly oil – 3 to 4 tspn
• Fenugreek seeds(vendhayam) – 1/4 tspn
• Mustard seeds and Urad dal – 1/2 tspn
• Curry leaves – 1 or 2 sprigs

Grind and make a fine paste of:

• Coconut – 1 or 2 tspn
• Sauf – 1 tspn

Recipe:

1. Soak chickpeas overnight. The next day morning, pressure cook with little salt for 3 to 4 whistles.
2. Chop Onion and Tomato. Soak Tamarind for 15 minutes. Then extract tamarind juice from it.
3. Heat Oil in a pan. Add Fenugreek seeds and fry till golden brown.
4. Add Onion and fry till golden brown. Add Tomato and fry till it becomes soft.
5. Add Brinjal and fry for 2 minutes. Add Turmeric powder, Hing, Chili powder and Masala powder and fry for another 1 or 2 minutes.
6. Add water, Jaggery and boil for 5 minutes. Add tamarind water and boil for another 10 minutes.
7. Then add cooked Chickpeas and the ground paste of coconut and sauf. Boil till the curry is thick. Remove from heat.
8. For tampering: Heat Oil in another pan. Add Mustard seeds and Urad dal. Once it starts spluttering, add curry leaves and pour this to the curry.

Goes well with: Rice