Kathirikkai Gothsu | Eggplant Gothsu | Brinjal Gothsu

The best side dish to serve with Ven Pongal is this Kathirikkai Gothsu also called Eggplant Gothsu or Brinjal Gothsu. Serve it not just with Ven Pongal but also with Idli or Dosai and enjoy. 

I am a part of the group called the 'A-Z Recipe challenge', wherein a group of bloggers comes together and we choose key ingredients alphabetically to cook and post a dish every alternate month. This event was initiated by  Jolly Makkar and Vidya Narayan.

Kathirikkai Gothsu with pongal on the side

This month, the challenge is to choose an ingredient with the letter 'E' and make a dish out of it. So, I decided on the ingredient Eggplant which is also called brinjal or kathirikkai, and chose to make this delicious Kathirikkai Gothsu.

Gothsu is my favorite to eat with for many tiffin/breakfast items, especially Ven Pongal. The steaming hot pongal with a liberal serving of gothsu is a match made in heaven. Eggplant Gothsu is one of the very common gothsu that is made. It is a very simple recipe and so quick to make.

There are two different kinds of gothsu made with eggplant. One of them is called the Chidambaram Gothsu and it is made with roasted eggplants. This gothsu is not to be mistaken with the Chidambaram Gothsu. This is made with either the long eggplant or the small ones and no roasting is involved.

This Brinjal Gothsu goes really well not just with Ven Pongal, but with Idli and dosai as well. My favorite is to eat this Thayir Sadham / Yogurt rice. If you are looking to make a slightly different Pongal using millet, then give this Thinai Ven Pongal a try.

If you don't have eggplant in hand and still want to make gothsu, then try this Mixed Vegetable Gothsu / Kalyana Gothsu made with a few different vegetables that you have in hand.

Preparation time - 10 minutes
Cooking time - 30 minutes
Difficulty level - Easy

Ingredients to make Kathirikkai Gothsu - Serves 4

  • Eggplant / Kathirikkai (long or small) - 3 cups (chopped into ½ inch pieces)
  • Onion - 1 medium (chopped)
  • Tomato - 2 (chopped)
  • Green chilies - 2 (chopped)
  • Tamarind - tiny marble size (soaked in 2 cups of water)
  • Sambhar powder - 1 tbsp
  • Payatham paruppu / Moong dal - ⅓ cup
  • Jaggery - 1 tbsp
  • Salt - to taste
  • Cilantro - to garnish

For seasoning the Brinjal Gothsu

  • Gingelly oil or any cooking oil - 1 tbsp
  • Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
  • Ullutham paruppu - 2 tsp
  • Kadalai paruppu - 1 tsp
  • Curry leaves - few
  • Asafetida - a pinch
Eggplant Gothsu in a copper bottom bowl with pongal on the side

Procedure to make Eggplant Gothsu

  • Soak the tamarind in about 2 cups of hot water and extract the juice.
  • Wash and cook the payatham paruppu / Moong dal with enough water and a pinch of turmeric powder until soft. Keep it aside.
  • In a pan, heat the oil and add all the seasoning ingredients. Fry them until they are aromatic and golden brown.
  • Add the chopped onions and saute it for 2-3 minutes until slightly softened. Now add the tomatoes and fry for a minute.
  • Add the chopped eggplant and green chilies and saute for 5 minutes.
  • Now add the tamarind water to the vegetables and mix well. Add the Sambhar powder and salt and let the gothsu come to a boil.
Process shots for gothsu
  • Cook until the eggplant is soft and cooked.
  • Add the cooked payatham paruppu / moong dal and mix well. Add the jaggery as well and let the gothsu simmer for about 5 minutes.
Simmering the gravy
  • Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with Pongal!
Kathirikkai Gothsu final shot

More Eggplant Recipes

 If you made this recipe and liked it, give a star rating on the recipe card or let me know in the comments below. You could also share it with me on Instagram using #MyCookingJourney and tagging me @sandhya.ramakrishnan. You could follow me and my recipes on Facebook |Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter/X

Recipe

Kathirikkai Gothsu | Eggplant / Brinjal Gothsu

Kathirikkai Gothsu | Eggplant Gothsu | Brinjal Gothsu

The best side dish to serve with Ven Pongal is this Kathirikkai Gothsu also called Eggplant Gothsu or Brinjal Gothsu. Serve it not just with Ven Pongal but also with Idli or Dosai and enjoy. 
5 from 11 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian, South Indian, Tamil Nadu
Diet: Vegetarian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4 Servings
Calories: 163kcal

Equipment

  • pan
  • Stove
  • Knife

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Eggplant / Kathirikkai long or small - (chopped into ½ inch pieces)
  • 1 Onion medium chopped
  • 2 Tomato chopped
  • 2 Green chilies chopped
  • Tamarind tiny marble size soaked in 2 cups of water
  • 1 tablespoon Sambhar powder
  • cup Payatham paruppu / Moong dal
  • 1 tablespoon Jaggery
  • Salt to taste
  • Cilantro to garnish

For seasoning -

  • 1 tablespoon Gingelly oil or any cooking oil
  • 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
  • 2 teaspoon Ullutham paruppu
  • 1 teaspoon Kadalai paruppu
  • Curry leaves few
  • Asafetida a pinch

Instructions

  • Soak the tamarind in about 2 cups of hot water and extract the juice.
  • Wash and cook the payatham paruppu / Moong dal with enough water and pinch of turmeric powder until soft. Keep it aside.
  • In a pan, heat the oil and add all the seasoning ingredients. Fry them until they are aromatic and golden brown.
  • Add the chopped onions and saute it for 2-3 minutes until slightly softened. Now add the tomatoes and fry for a minute.
  • Add the chopped eggplant and green chilies and saute for 5 minutes.
  • Now add the tamarind water to the vegetables and mix well. Add the Sambhar powder and salt and let the gothsu come to a boil.
  • Cook until the eggplant is soft and cooked.
  • Add the cooked payatham paruppu / moong dal and mix well. Add the jaggery as well and let the gothsu simmer for about 5 minutes.
  • Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with Pongal!

Nutrition

Calories: 163kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 86mg | Potassium: 332mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 561IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @Sandhya.Ramakrishnan or tag #MyCookingJourney!

22 Comments

  1. Gothsu sounds so flavourful and mouthwatering. I am drooling. Perfect accompany with steamed rice or roti. Loved it.

  2. 5 stars
    Eggplant with moong dal! I have never tried the combination except for sometimes adding a little eggplant to sambhar but you recipe really celebrates eggplant with dal 🙂 Will definitely try it! Thanks for sharing

  3. What an flavourful mung dal with eggplant.........I think it can also goes well with steamed rice......will surely give it a try.... 🙂

  4. 5 stars
    A new dish for me sounds similar to sambhar with moong daal added to it. Sounds so comforting and delicious. I will like to have it some steamed rice!!

  5. 5 stars
    so flavorful dish it looks !!! Such a lovely dish for theme sharing using eggplant. Will surely tried someday :0

  6. 5 stars
    Wow!! Just checked out another gothsu and this one looks amazing too! With the every popular pantry item sambar powder, making this soon 🙂 Awesome share dear <3

  7. Sandhya, being a South Indian myself and an aubergine fan, whenever I think of making idlis or pongal, gothsu is always on my mind rather than the usual chutney. My husband is not a huge fan of aubergines so I make this rarely now, with just the two of us, cannot expect variety. I think the next time he travels, I am making this for myself and enjoying with piping hot Pongal. Beautiful image and love that colour of gothsu.

  8. My my... I am drooling at 6 AM in the morning and wondering whether I have time to make this before I go to work. Alas, it will have to be a treat for another day.

    I love the Gotsu-Ven Pongal combination.

  9. 5 stars
    Eggplant gothsu looks yum and delicious. A different way of cooking eggplant as I have never added tamarind pulp in eggplant.

  10. Gorgeous Eggplant gothsu, love the color and such a simple recipe. We enjoy this so so much with hot roti and steamed rice 🙂

  11. 5 stars
    My husband always says kathirikkai gothsu is the best side dish for pongal, somehow I never dared to try it as its a totally new dish to me. Your's look appetising and delicious I am bookmarking to try it soon. Thanks for sharing 🙂

  12. 5 stars
    I absolutely agree. There is no better combo for Pongal than the gosthu, I have given your version today to my mil as hers is very different and she wanted to try something new.

  13. Just love gothsu with ven pongal and idlies, its been a while i made them. And its one of my favourite side dish to enjoy without any guilt.

5 from 11 votes (1 rating without comment)

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