INDIAN & SRI LANKAN
SRI LANKAN AUBERGINE CURRY
- Timescale In A Hurry
- Serves 2-4
- Difficulty Simple
The aubergine curries in Sri Lanka were amongst our favourite dishes we experienced there – usually deep-fried, we’ve opted to bake the aubergine as it’s both healthier and helps to impart flavour with spices added. This is a stunning vegan aubergine curry, perfect as one of a set in a thali-style meal or even better as a vegetarian or vegan main!
Ingredients
2 Large Aubergines
2 Small Tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 Small Onion, finely diced
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 Red Chilli, finely diced
200ml Coconut Milk
10 Curry Leaves
1 tsp. Black Mustard Seeds
2 tsp. Curry Powder
1 tsp. Ground Coriander
1 tsp. Turmeric Powder
1 tsp. Chilli Powder
½ tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp. White Wine Vinegar
2 tsp. Coconut Sugar
1 Small Bunch of Coriander, roughly chopped
Generous Pinch of Salt and Pepper
METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
2. Cut the aubergine into wedges, roughly the the size of a classic potato wedge. Drizzle 2 teaspoons of melted coconut oil over the aubergines, followed by half of the curry powder and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix together to ensure the aubergine is evenly seasoned and place in the oven. Bake the aubergine for 25-30 minutes or until the aubergine is cooked through and softened.
3. Place a large pan over a medium heat with 2 teaspoons of coconut oil. Once hot, add the mustard seeds to the pan and cook for a minute or until they just start to spit. Add in the onion, garlic, chilli and curry leaves and sauté for 2-3 minutes until the onions are just starting to colour. Next, add in the ground spices and cook off for a further 1-2 minutes. Finally, add the tomatoes, vinegar and coconut sugar and mix together.
If you can’t get ahold of coconut sugar you can replace this with regular caster sugar which is what would usually be used – we decided to use coconut sugar instead as it’s healthier and felt more in keeping with Sri Lanka’s love of coconut!
4. Add the cooked aubergine and the coconut milk to the pan, mix together and then leave to cook for 15-20 minutes or until the coconut milk has reduced by half. Season to taste.
5. Serve the vegan aubergine curry immediately as part of a tali or enjoy as the main event with rice and coconut sambaal.
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