Vankaya Perugu koora

(eggplant cooked in yogurt gravy-Guntur style)Brinjal (that is how eggplant is referred to in India) is the queen of hearts in Andhra. Almost every household makes several varieties of dishes with different varieties of brinjals. I have vivid memories of stealthily plucking the beautiful lavenderish eggplant flowers from my granddad's vegetable garden. From foliage to flowers to fruits (I mean veggies) this is a beautiful plant.
This dish is from rural Guntur district. Usually made with long variety brinjals. I've included Indian cucumber to add interest.

What you need to make this curry:

3-4 Indian or Japanese style eggplants
1/2 Indian cucumber
1 medium sized onion, sliced
2-3 green chilies, sliced
1 cup fresh yogurt
1 tbsp gram flour
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chili powder
Salt to taste
Tadka items:1-2 tbsp cooking oil, 1tsp each chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds, jeera seeds, 1 sprig curry leaves

Prep Work
Quarter eggplants and cut into 1 inch pieces. Place the pieces in salt water (salt added to water). Peel Indian cucumber, check for bitterness. If bitter, you may still use the flesh after removing seeds and washing thoroughly, given the flesh is not bitter too. Slice, cut into small bite sized cubes.

Method:

• Drain eggplant pieces well, squeeze gently to remove some water. Add cucumber pieces, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, gram flour, yogurt, and 1/4th cup water. Mix well.
• In a skillet heat cooking oil and add tadka items one by one in the order given.
• When the mustard seeds stop spluttering, add onions, green chiles. Saute until onions are translucent.
• Add eggplant mixture. Mix well.
• Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until eggplant pieces are cooked well (should not be mushy). Add little water if the curry is becoming too dry.

This curry taste good both with boiled rice and roti. Traditionally this is served with steaming rice with generous amount of ghee (clarified butter)