Delicious & Vegan | Eggplant Dish
This is the ULTIMATE eggplant dish. Will convert even the biggest haters of eggplant. Its a delicious and decadent fried eggplant dish featuring a rich and sweet sauce. This traditional recipe is a labor of love, but trust me, it’s worth every minute. Serve it as a zesty side dish or as a mouthwatering accompaniment to your favourite rice and curry spread. Get ready to savour the irresistible combination of savoury, tangy, and slightly sweet flavours—Wambatu Moju is sure to become my new favourite obsession and I’m sure will become yours too!
First up, slice your eggplant into bite-sized wedges and coat them in a turmeric-based dry mix to kickstart that amazing flavour. Then, it’s fry time! Deep-fry those wedges until they’re golden and crispy, then toss them in a sauce loaded with whole spices like coriander seeds, mustard seeds, and fragrant curry leaves. The result? A flavour explosion you won’t be able to resist! So if you want some, then come get some!
TIPS & TRICK
Tip #1: Let your eggplant wedges sit in an colander after coating them with your turmeric dry rub. This will allow all the excess water in the eggplant to drain without making the wedges soggy.
Tip #2: Soak your tamarind paste in 1 tbsp of warm water for a few minutes, then mix it with a spoon until it forms a soft paste. This helps the tamarind melt smoothly into the sauce.
CAN YOU MAKE IT VEGAN?
This is already a vegan curry dish!
Wambatu Moju
Ingredients
- 400g Eggplant (3-4 long eggplants)
- 2 tsp turmeric powder
- 3 tsp salt
- Oil for frying
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp coriander seeds (crushed)
- 8-10 curry leaves
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1’’ knob of ginger
- 1 red onion
- 1 long red chilli
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp tamarind paste
- 1 tomato
- ¼ sugar
Directions
- Cut eggplant into wedges and toss in a bowl with salt and turmeric. Next, let them drain in a colander for about an hour.
- While that is resting we can begin our sauce! In a pan, heat up some oil and add in crushed coriander seeds, mustard seeds, curry leaves, ginger, and garlic.
- Once those become fragrant, add in the sliced red onion, curry powder, and chopped red chilli. Sprinkle in the remaining teaspoon of salt.
- Add the softened tamarind paste (*see TIPS & TRICKS section)
- Lower heat to lowest setting and add diced tomato and sugar.
- Meanwhile, heat frying oil in a deep pan. Fry eggplant wedges in small batches until they turn dark brown, about 5-6 minutes.
- Once all the eggplant is fried, add it to your sauce and mix everything together for a few more minutes.
- Remove from heat and enjoy with some rice
