Kathirikkai Kaara Kuzhambu is a spicy, tangy and delicious dish which accompany well with hot rice. This Brinjal Kaara Kuzhambu uses vinegar which is not quite often used in Indian Cooking.
Eggplants are in overload in our backyard. So for the past couple of weeks, I have been making eggplants almost every other day. I usually freeze the produce that grows in our backyard and use it throughout the year.
Eggplant is one vegetable that I hesitate to freeze as such. I have to either make eggplant patties to make eggplant parmigiana or I have to roast the eggplants and take its pulp out to freeze. This pulp I use in making Baingan ka bharta or to make kathirikkai thuvayal.
This year though I decided to use my imagination and come up with several dishes to make without repetition to use the eggplants. This recipe for the Kathirikkai kaara kuzhambu has been in my recipe book for a long time.
I think I wrote this Brinjal Kaara Kuzhambu recipe down from one of the TV shows. I have made it few times and it turns out to be a pretty good dish. It is spicy, tangy and delicious with hot rice.
One more new thing about the recipe is that it uses vinegar. I have never made any other Indian kuzhambu using vinegar, so this was quite new to me.
If you are looking for more recipes to make with eggplant, then you have to absolutely try this Kathirikkai Podi curry made with freshly ground spices. And when you are at it, do check the Dahi Baingana recipe, which has egpplant in yogurt.
Preparation time – 15 mins
Cooking time – 40 mins
Difficulty level – easy
Ingredients to make Kathirikkai Kaara Kuzhambu – serves 6
- Kathirikkai/eggplant/brinjal – about 3 cups chopped
- Onions – 2 (chopped)
- Tomato – 3 (chopped)
- Thick tamarind water – 1 cup
- Ginger Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
- Green chilies – 3
- Chili powder – 2 tsp
- Dhania/coriander powder – 2 tsp
- Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
- Oil – 4 tbsp
- Vinegar – 2 tbsp
- Salt – to taste
- Karuvepillai/curry leaves – few
Fry and grind together –
- Menthiyam/fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp
- Ellu/white sesame seeds – 1 tsp
- Jeeragam/cumin seeds – 1 tsp
To season –
- Kadugu/mustard seeds – 1 tsp
- Menthiyam/fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp
- Jeeragam/cumin seeds – 1 tsp
- Pepper corns/milagu – 1 tsp
Procedure to make Brinjal Kaara Kuzhambu -
- Soak a large lemon size ball of tamarind in hot water and squeeze out the extract and keep aside.
- Fry the ingredients mentioned (menthiyam, jeeragam and sesame) together and grind it into powder once cooled.
- Heat a sauce pan and add oil. Once the oil heats add the ingredients mentioned under seasoning and fry for a minute.
- Now add the chopped onions along with turmeric powder and sauté for about 5 mins. Now add the ginger garlic paste and fry for couple of minutes more.
- Next add the chopped eggplant and sauté for about 5 mins or until slightly softened.
- Next add the tomatoes, green chilies, dhania powder, chili powder and salt. Mix everything well and fry for 5 more minutes.
- Now add the tamarind extract and vinegar. If the kuzhambu appears too thick, add about ½ cup of water and let it boil. Add the curry leaves too at this stage.
- Let the mixture boil for about 15 minutes or until the raw smell goes. Now add the ground powder and let it come to a boil once.
- Turn off the flame and serve hot with rice.
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Kathirikkai Kaara Kuzhambu – Brinjal Kaara Kuzhambu
Equipment
- pan
Ingredients
- 3 cups Kathirikkai/eggplant/brinjal Chopped
- 2 Onions chopped
- 3 Tomato chopped
- 1 cup Thick tamarind water
- 1 tbsp. Ginger Garlic paste
- 3 Green chilies
- 2 teaspoon Chili powder
- 2 teaspoon Dhania/coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 4 tbsp. Oil
- 2 tbsp. Vinegar
- Salt – to taste
- Few Karuvepillai/curry leaves
FRY AND GRIND TOGETHER –
- 1 teaspoon Menthiyam/fenugreek seeds
- 1 teaspoon Ellu/white sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon Jeeragam/cumin seeds
TO SEASON –
- 1 teaspoon Kadugu/mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Menthiyam/fenugreek seeds
- 1 teaspoon Jeeragam/cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon Pepper corns/milagu
Instructions
- Soak a large lemon size ball of tamarind in hot water and squeeze out the extract and keep aside.
- Fry the ingredients mentioned (menthiyam, jeeragam, and sesame) together and grind it into powder once cooled.
- Heat a saucepan and add oil. Once the oil heats add the ingredients mentioned under seasoning and fry for a minute.
- Now add the chopped onions along with turmeric powder and sauté for about 5 mins. Now add the ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes more.
- Next, add the chopped eggplant and sauté for about 5 mins or until slightly softened.
- Next add the tomatoes, green chilies, dhania powder, chili powder, and salt. Mix everything well and fry for 5 more minutes.
- Now add the tamarind extract and vinegar. If the kuzhambu appears too thick, add about ½ cup of water and let it boil. Add the curry leaves too at this stage.
- Let the mixture boil for about 15 minutes or until the raw smell goes. Now add the ground powder and let it come to boil once.
- Turn off the flame and serve hot with rice.
Arthy shama says
Looks great and like the colour, appetizing too 🙂
Sona S says
Delicious and spicy kuzhambu.
Sona S says
Delicious and spicy kuzhambu.
megha singhal says
that look really nice. it goes in my recipe box for eggplant. and yes can i get some garden fresh eggplant 😉
https://goodeatstostyle.blogspot.com/
divya says
Delicious and mouthwatering