Brinjal Pitla - Kathirikkai Pitla

         One of the traditional recipe from the Iyer's kitchen is Brinjal pitla. A very simple delicious side dish that goes well with Papads and rice.

Ingredients:

Small Brinjal - 250 gms - Sliced along the length. Let the slices not be too wide or too thin. Keep them soaked in water to avoid discoloration.

Stir fry ingredients:  Two spoons of oil, groundnut seeds, mustard seeds, Urad dhal, Turmeric, Salt to taste

Toor dhal 1 cup

Coconut grating fresh

Black peppercorns - 1 Spoons

Way to go

• Cook Toor Dhal separately in a pressure cooker. 
• Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, groundnut seeds, urad dhal, curry leaves and saute for few seconds in medium flame. 
• Once saute add the sliced brinjal, toss well. Then add a spoon of turmeric powder and a pinch of salt as per taste. Toss well again and cook in low-medium flame until the Brinjal is cooked soft.  DO NOT ADD WATER To cook, as brinjal can get mushy.
• Once the brinjal gets cooked to soft, add tamarind water and cook until raw smell 
• Add sambar powder once tamarind raw smell goes off. 
• Add cooked toor dhal to this.
• Make grounded chutney of fresh coconut and few Peppercorns.
• Add it to the above mixture and boil gently for two mts without overlooking. Adjust salt n sambarbpowder for taste.