Roasted eggplant with tamarind and cilantro Batinjan bil tamer hindi

Tara’s kids are always asking which of them is her favorite child. “I have a favorite daughter,” she tells only daughter, Scarlett. “And definitely a favorite oldest son,” she explains to Scarlett’s twin brother, Theo. “And, of course, my favorite youngest child will always be Casper,” she says to the little one, before he punches the air and runs off to make some noise. When it comes to vegetable “favorites,” though, no such qualifications are needed: it’s eggplant all the way. So loved is the mighty eggplant, and in this dish in particular, that they swiftly became Tara’s new screensaver for her phone when they were shot for the book. Tara’s favorite daughter—who’d previously taken the coveted screensaver spot—was distinctly unimpressed to have been bumped out by a vegetable. This can be served either as a veggie main, with some rice and yogurt spooned alongside, or as a side to all sorts of things—some pan-fried tofu, for example, or a lamb chop. Getting ahead: This is a dish that can be made and assembled a good few hours before serving; it’s happy to sit around for up to 5 hours. It can even be made the day before, if you like. Keep it in the fridge overnight, and either warm it through for a few minutes (before sprinkling with the fresh cilantro) or bring it back to room temperature before serving.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Step 2

Place the tamarind pulp in a bowl and pour in the boiling water. Set aside for 20 minutes or so, stirring or squeezing the pulp into the water from time to time. (If starting with ready-made paste, just place in a bowl.)

Step 3

Use a small, sharp knife to make four or five deep, parallel incisions in the cut side of each eggplant half. Don’t go so far through the flesh that you reach the skin on the other side. Repeat at a 45-degree angle to create a diamond pattern. Place the eggplants on the prepared baking sheet, cut side up, and brush evenly with ¼ cup/60ml of oil. Sprinkle with ¾ tsp of salt and a good grind of black pepper and roast for about 35 minutes, turning the sheet around halfway through roasting, until the eggplants are cooked through, soft, and golden brown.

Step 4

While the eggplants are roasting, pass the tamarind mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl; it should weigh about 2½ oz/70g. The seeds and pulp left behind in the sieve can be discarded. Add the remaining 2 tbsp of oil along with the garlic, lemon juice, sugar, ¾ tsp of salt, and a grind of black pepper to the tamarind. Mix well and then, when the eggplants have been roasting for 35 minutes, generously

Step 5

spoon this sauce on their cut sides. Sprinkle with the coriander seeds and return to the oven for a final 5 minutes. There will be a bit of excess sauce on the baking sheet but that’s fine; you can just spoon this over the eggplants when serving.

Step 6

Remove the eggplants from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes (or longer if serving at room temperature) before transferring to a serving platter or individual plates. Sprinkle with the lemon zest and cilantro and serve.