Bharlel sagle is a favorite dish of mine which goes very well with amchighel dalithoy and rice. This dish can be made with small baby eggplants (saan vaingan) or small gula. Small Varieties of eggplant or brinjal tend to be slightly bitter so we use a small piece of jaggery to mask it. Here I have used small green Thai eggplant which is not bitter at all, so jaggery can be avoided (though I have used it in this recipe). Just to be clear this is not gula.

INGREDIENTS:-

• Small Thai green eggplant- 15-20
• Grated Coconut- 2 C
• Dried Red Chilies Roasted – 10-15 ( 10 spicy ones + 5 bedgi less spicy ones)
• Coriander seeds- 2 tsp heaped
• Fenugreek Seeds (methi)- 1/2 tsp
• Tamarind –  a pebble sized
• Jaggery (optional) – a pebble sized or even lesser
• salt to taste
• Onion -1 -2 chopped
• Oil- 2 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – 1 sprig

METHOD:-

• Wash thoroughly , remove stalk and trim the cap of the eggplant
• Cut 3-4 slits lengthwise from bottom up but not all the way through the eggplant and soak in water
• Roast Red chilies in a little oil
• Roast Coriander seeds and methi seeds in the same pan with little oil
• Grind  the coconut gratings along with roasted red chilies, tamarind, jaggery and salt, along with very little water to a slightly coarse paste
• Add roasted coriander seeds and methi seeds to this masala and pulse a few times to crush it nicely. The masala should be slightly coarse and dry enough to stuff.
• Stuff the eggplants with this masala through the slits and keep aside.
• Rinse the grinder jar with little water and keep aside
• In a wide pan heat oil and splatter mustard seeds and curry leaves
• To this add chopped onion and fry a bit till it smells nice (slightly brown but not till golden)
• Add the stuffed eggplants along with left over masala and add the rinsed water.
• Cook for a few minutes covered till the eggplants are cooked through and the masala is semi dry. The oil should start separating at the sides.
• Lightly stir to avoid burning at the bottom but make sure not to break the eggplant.
• Enjoy with rice and dalithoy.