Wash the brinjal, chop it lengthwise, place the eggplant pieces in a large water bowl for about 10 minutes, and drain the water.
8-10 baby eggplants
Drizzle coconut oil in a pan over medium heat. When the oil heats up, add the drained brinjal slices in a single layer, and saute them for 2-3 minutes.
2 tablespoon coconut oil
Add turmeric powder, tamarind pulp water(soak the lemon-sized tamarind in the water for 10 minutes), jaggery, and salt and continue to saute them for two more minutes and cover with a lid.
1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon tamarind, 1 tablespoon grated jaggery, Salt to taste
Meanwhile, blend the grated coconut with coriander seeds, cumin, rice, and red chilies with ¾ cup water to a fine consistency.
½ cup grated coconut, 2 tablespoon coriander seeds, 2 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 tablespoon rice, 5-6 red chilies
Add the ground masala base to the sauteed Brinjal and cook for 10 minutes on low flame.
Prepare tempering: Heat oil in a small pan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds, urad dal, one red chili halved, and fresh curry leaves. Once they start spluttering, pour this tempering over the cooked eggplant.
1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon split black gram, 5 curry leaves
Serve brinjal fry hot with steamed rice or roti for a delicious South Indian meal!