Brinjal @ Eggplant @ Aubergine @ Kathirikai

My favourite vegetable for the moment, yes, is brinjal, yes. It comes in many colors and shapes. Shiny deep purple, green, white and white/purple strikes. Also in long or round or oblong shapes. Dont forget their favourite Thai cousin, mini version aka terung pipit aka sparrow brinjal aka sundakkai aka turkey berry aka ma waeng.

Again my vivid memory of this vegetable has to come from my maternal grandma, bless her, i grew up watching her cook from the time i was 1 hanging out the kitchen window talking to the trees and birds till i was well into secondary school, about 16 years. She planted a few vegetables for her use like chillies, long beans, okras (ladies finger) and brinjals.

Half way into her cooking, she would call out to me... 'Girlie!!!!! Can you go out and pluck a few brinjals. Make sure get the big ones only , ok, and watch out for the pricklies..!"


You see, the brinjal plant had those prickly little 'hairs' on its leaves that can get stuck to ur skin and give you pain and itch at the same time. And there are tiny thorns on the branches. But I loved going hunting for brinjals as the brinjals like to hide behind the leaves and you hv to peek it from the bottom up to look for ripe ones. Some can go totally undetected if you are not careful. So yea, finding them is like a little treasure hunt. And the tiny purple flowers a delight. On the green brinjal plant, you get white flowers instead. Nature's a genius, innit?!!!

My taste for miracle of a vegetable grew as i found newer ways to savour than just dumping wedges innto fish and dhall curry. There was the spicy sourish pachadi with raisins, another family favourite.


Then somewhere in my teens, my mom learned to make the pal curry version for my grandad.It was a totally white creamy version, sourish and flavoured by cinnamon stick coupled with soymeat masala, it was simply divine. I got hooked on it.

Strangely so, it is rather the men more than women who hv developed a special taste for this vegetable.


Then once i moved to the city, i came across the mind blowing steamed or lightly sauteed brinjal laden with belacan or sambal sauce. The steamed version really brings out the natural sweetness of the brinjal flesh once cooked.



I was amazed to find a raw version came thinly sliced in a Greek sandwich at Oliver's Super Sandwiches in Midvalley(now extinct). I thought eating raw brinjal can give you an itch but it did not at all. Of course the west likes to retain the taste of the original ingredient even its meat or vege dishes while the east likes to camouflage it in as much as spices, chillies, herbs or other condiments.


The lastest version i had was in pasta, tomatoey, slathered in olive oil and grilled . Very moorish.


And not forgetting again, the sundakkai, good for your blood version, can be fried or made into sambal or thrown into puli curry or even fish curry like i did some time back. Lovely. Not bitter at all.

So there is my tribute to brinjal, i felt like it tonight and so this came to be. Brinjal, so yummy.

note : pics belongs to owners.