113: Baignan Bharta V5

This weeks baignan was all about whole spices. I liked how the last batch turned out so I decided to attempt with the coriander as I had with the cumin- putting the whole seeds in the beginning to fry a bit. I also (on a whim) added a "lipstick" pepper I'd had considered adding to my salsa. It was already charred, it needed to be put to use.

The end result, tasted good, just, again, not what I'm looking for in my Baignan Bharta. A little dissappointing after how close I was with V4. Overly salty and too... smoky? The cumin appears to have broken apart and dispersed, flavor-wise, but I'm not getting that bright coriander flavor.

Honestly I'd been so busy the last few days I'm happy I got around to using the eggplant at all. It was white, which again worried me that this would be too sweet, but I think the things I mention as being issues above actually took care of the sweetness well. Once I have a grain at home to mix I'll see how it is when a little less intense. It also seems to improve in the fridge after a day or two.

I'm not against trying the whole spices thing again, but it may be a dry toast/grind/then use situation as opposed to keeping them whole. Good to try though, just so I know it doesn't work.

100: Baignan Bharta V4

Ok. So. Don't want to jinx it, but I'm nearly there. This smells spot on and it tastes very close. Looking at more and more recipes I've been noticing the general shape of baignan bharta, which ingredients are common and which aren't, so this time I didn't so much use a particular recipe as my favorites from each.

Things that still need adjusting:

- correct eggplant type: got a white eggplant from my csa, sweeter/lighter than the regular purple

- spice level: used just one small chili I'd picked up at Kalustyan's. No seeds. Still a little on the spicy side. Kamal's has a nice slow burn, may move back to jalapenos next time.

One benefit to this method is I more or less kept track of my ingredients. I'm listing them a bit weirdly, as the spices are especially iffy, but I think you can still follow along at home if you'd like.

Ingredients:

- 1 eggplant, roasted and mashed

- juice of one lime

- 3-4 Roma tomatoes, diced

- 2 medium onions, diced (one sweet, one regular)

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 green chili, minced

- 2" knob of ginger, grated

- 2 tbs cilantro, chopped

 Spices:

- pinch of hing

- 3/4 tsp cumin seeds

- 3/4 tsp coriander

- 1/2 tsp black pepper

- 3/4 tsp turmeric

- pinch of cinnamon (needed?)

- pinch of red pepper flake (needed?)

- salt to taste

Here's the game changer, people: Hing (so much easier to spell than asafoetida, and less threatening, too)

This is how I need to store hing. It's in its plastic container (from india, it looks pretty cool), in a plastic bag, in a mason jar on top of my fridge. No enclosed shelf spaces for this guy- I had it just in the plastic bag in my cupboard and overnight it was reeking up the place.

It's a very subtle but important flavor, very happy I picked it up the other day. Not sure how much importance to give it- as my last attempt was too spicy to really discern the flavors- but I don't think I'll try baignan bharta again without it.

Begin by roasting the eggplant under the broiler until the skin's nicely charred and the eggplant is soft. I usually cut mine in half and place it cut side down, then piece it all over with a fork. Once it's soft I put it in a pyrex tupperware container to steam and cool. Remove the skin (I find it easiest to lay it skin side down then scrape/scoop the contents out with a spoon) and mash with the lime juice. I'm thinking of cutting back on the lime juice next time- it mixed in with the rest of the flavors eventually but was very strong for a bit.

Sometimes I do the eggplant a day (or two) before, grouping it with another thing that needs to happen in my oven, but this time it was the same day. I don't think that makes a difference.

I started a little oil in a pan, added my cumin seeds and a little sprinkle of hing (you pierce a hole in the container and sprinkle the contents out, no measuring here). Let those sizzle a bit then added my onions.

Once those got soft/translucent added the garlic and chili, as well as the grated ginger. Next time I'll wait a little on the ginger, it can burn/stick pretty quickly. 

Then added the tomatoes and spices. Speaking of spices those are, at best, iffy amounts. A lot of the 3/4 tsp levels started at 1/2 tsp then I added (without measuring) to nudge the taste a bit one way or another.

I'm undecided if it needs the cinnamon. There was a flavor level missing, which it hit, but last night it smelled so strongly of it. I think it mellowed out with a night in the fridge, maybe cut that back a touch. It's best when you don't really know its there.

The red pepper flake, too, may not be necessary, given how hot those chilis are. Or maybe I could try just using the red pepper flake with no physical chili?

Anyway, after the tomatoes have been going for a bit (recipes usually say to wait until the oil separates- I've seen that once making this, maybe I'm not adding enough oil ha), I added the eggplant mixture, and let that go for a while as I did dishes, stirring occasionally so it didn't burn.

Turned off the heat, stirred in my cilantro and served on a little quinoa.

I'm really excited about this.

Too excited? Maybe. But given how much work I've put into this dish it's great to see it coming together.

98: Indian Leftovers Pizza

What do you do with Indian leftovers? Make pizza! May be one of my favorite things when it's done well (aka with Kamal). Still, pizza is pizza and fresh is inherently delicious, even if your repeated attempts at baignan bharta don't turn out as expected.

I still had some dough in the freezer from the last pizzas I made, stretched those out on some parchment topped with a little cornmeal as the oven preheated to 450. 

Topped the dough with some leftover baignan bharta and some paneer I picked up at Kalustyan's (got another goodie from there I'm looking forward to trying). I made two mini-pizzas, one with an egg per my tradition. Cooked on my pizza stone for about 15 minutes (looking for a soft yolk and some crust browning so timing is variable) and topped then a little cilantro when it came out of the oven.

This was my first time working with paneer. It definitely helped mellow out the spiciness, but didn't realize it wouldn't melt at all. Next time I'll mix most into the sauce.

I'm surprised this kind of thing doesn't happen more often- it's my favorite way of using leftover Indian or chili, or anything that's spreadable but not super runny. 

Helpful equation:  __________ + fresh dough + cheese + egg = delicious. Doesn't matter what it is.

97: Baignan Bharta V3

In case you were unaware, I'm on an epic quest to recreate my favorite Indian dish. Here are tries one and two. 

Did I do it this time? No. The recipe was a few steps away from the prior versions- mainly no garam masala- but the writer kept taking up the smoky flavors. Kamal's baignan bharta is not smoky, but I gave it a go anyway, hoping to see what the minimal spice would be like. Maybe if I got a sense of the inherent flavors in the dish I could see what needed to be added to achieve my desired result.

Ingredients (adapted from the link above):

1 lb eggplant
2.5 tablespoon oil, divided
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 jalapenos, diced
2.5 cups tomatoes, diced
1/2 tablespoon julienned fresh ginger (I didn't have ginger. Somehow)
salt to taste
3/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Chopped cilantro

The recipe has fewer spices, but unfortunately the jalapenos I chose were INSANELY hot somehow. In the past I'd put a whole one in and gotten no heat, this time two makes this fairly painful to eat. Which makes me sad. I tried mixing in a bunch of yogurt- no dice. Still too spicy.

There will be a bit of a regroup before my next attempt. At the very least I'd like to stop at an Indian grocery store to pick up a different mix of garam masala, as well as a red chili powder. And maybe a different spicy green pepper.

A reach goal is to go back to Kamal and try theirs again/beg for a recipe. But it's a bit of a trip for a weeknight, and I'm not sure I have a free weekend until September.

84: Baingan Bharta V2

My last attempt was less than successful. Or was good, but not what I wanted. This time I used a recipe from the NY Times. Differences bolded below:

1 pounds eggplant
1 tablespoons lime juice (new)

1 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 fresh hot green chile like a jalapeno, diced
1/2 pound fresh canned tomatoes, chopped (less)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric (less)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
1/4 cup chopped cilantro, thin stems included
1 teaspoons garam masala (less)**

**Due to a mistrascription I ended up adding a tablespoon...or more like two teaspoons as in the moment I had a feeling that was way too much

The other recipe had additional coriander, garlic powder and cumin, which this does not. I also added about a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger (I'm a fan, if you haven't figured it out yet). 

Honestly I don't think the differences between the amounted to much. I did a taste before I'd added the garam masala and it was nice, so I think the lime juice helped. Using canned tomatoes didn't appear to have much of an impact, but it could've contributed to the muddiness I want to avoid. Overall it was still too spicy (spices wise, not heat)- which is a lot my fault here- but I'm thinking there's more to it.

Notes for Improvement:
- Fresh tomatoes, more of them
- Keep the lime, add more ginger and jalapeno
- Garam Masala is a mix and varies depending on the brand. I'd like to go to an Indian grocery store this week and try another in the next batch. 
- OR: here are a few recipes with no garam masala
- Wouldn't hurt to make a trip back to try my fav version, and maybe sweet talk a recipe from the restaurant

71: Baingan Bharta

My favorite Indian dish. It's my go to when I try a new place. The high bar for me is Kamal Palace in North Arlington, NJ. Seriously the best Indian food I've ever had- very fresh, not super oily or heavy.

I want to make that. So while I originally linked to this recipe from the Times, there are a few other recipes that look a little closer to my goal. I did the "few" recipe, despite the comic sans. I didn't have the peas or the asafoetida, subbed out garlic powder for the latter.

It looked similar to Kamal's and had a similar smell, but the spices were too strong and muddy.

Drunken leftovers with a few eggs (would've been one but the yolk broke so...) were delicious though.

And honestly even sans egg the flavors melded and were less offensively spicy after a night in the fridge. It's still not what I wanted, though. I'm not sure how to combat this in the future.

Notes for (possible) Improvement:
- More tomatoes? Kamal's was brighter. Or more cilantro or lime could add that too.
- Less spices. Less turmeric and cumin for sure.
- Try another one of those recipes to see if it turns out more as you hoped.