Eggplant Ravaiya
- Total Time
- 40 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1cup roasted peanuts
- 1tablespoon kosher salt
- 1tablespoon jaggery (unrefined cane sugar), or cane or turbinado sugar
- 1tablespoon ground coriander
- 1teaspoon ground cumin
- 1teaspoon Kashmiri chile powder or ½ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- ½teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½teaspoon minced garlic
- ½teaspoon minced ginger
- ½teaspoon minced Serrano chile (if you like less heat, you can remove the seeds and pith)
- Pinch asafetida (optional)
- 1teaspoon chickpea flour
- 2tablespoons olive oil
- 8baby eggplants (see note)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
382 calories; 26 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 14 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 15 grams dietary fiber; 18 grams sugars; 13 grams protein; 967 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Put all ingredients except for the olive oil and eggplants in a food processor, and pulse until the peanuts are ground. Add oil and pulse to combine; the mixture will resemble damp sand. Set aside.
- Step 2
Cut a crosshatch in the bottom of the eggplant about three-quarters of the way up the fruit, leaving the stem intact. (In other words, you’re making a deep plus-sign shape in the bulbous part of the fruit, so you can stuff it with the peanut filling.) Repeat with the remaining eggplants.
- Step 3
Stuff each eggplant with a little of the peanut mixture, just enough to fill the hole. You should have some peanut mixture left over.
- Step 4
Place the stuffed eggplants on their sides in a single layer on the bottom of a large pot or saucepan with a lid. The eggplants can overlap a little, but ideally they will all fit on the bottom of the pot. Dollop the leftover peanut mixture on top of and around the eggplants, and add 1 cup of water. Turn heat to medium and cover the pot. Let the eggplant cook at a simmer, adjusting the heat as necessary, for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until the eggplants are just tender when you poke them at the stem end with the tip of a knife.
- Step 5
Taste the sauce for salt, and serve hot with basmati rice or Indian flatbreads.
Tip
- It’s best to use baby eggplants (about 4 inches long) shaped like teardrops. The chef Niven Patel uses an Indian variety, but this shape is also grown in Italy and elsewhere, so you can find it at farmers’ markets and some supermarkets too. Or use long skinny Japanese eggplants, and cut them into about 4-inch pieces, then make two slits in each piece as you would for a whole teardrop eggplant. They will break down a bit more but will still taste good.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
Mary Zins
The oil is added to the peanut mixture after the peanuts are ground with the spices and flour. See Step 1
ccgg11
Followed the recipe and I think 1 TB of salt is too much. Served it with a very lemony raita to cut the saltiness and save the dish. Will try again and add salt to taste at the end.
Prakash Nadkarni
The instructions omit how the olive oil is used. I've made a similar dish, so I presume it's combined with the water at step 4 with the water (which should have mostly evaporated by the end of the cooking).
Some freshly chopped cilantro leaves, added in the last 5 minutes of cooking, is a nice addition (those who don't care for cilantro can substitute parsley, which is admittedly non-traditional: the parsley plant, a temperate herb, does not grow well in tropical India).
Nora Cassidy
This was my third time making this recipe, which my family *loves.* The spice changes I made are: - 1 t sugar and 1 t salt - Toasted coriander seeds (mine are a little old) and then ground them with a mortar and pestle - Heaping 1/2 t of curry powder (Maharajah blend from Penzey's) - Generous with the turmeric and asafetida - 1/4 t cayenne and no pepper - Added lemon juice after the oil I also used cornmeal instead of chickpea flour. I served it on top of coconut rice mixed with lemon peel
Chefneena
Authentic recipe. And great article. But I would never use olive oil. Peanut oil would be the best choice as Gujarati food and Indian food would never taste the same with olive oil.
Susan C
I'm sure your recipe was tasty but it is not this recipe.
Deepa
It won't adversely affect the taste but in my opinion it is a great addition. Gujarati food is usually sweet, sour and spicy which distinguishes it from other cuisines in India which do not have the sweetness.
Carol
Just made this and it was Fabulous. My only change was to make it in the pressure cooker and I added about a pound of string beans. It cooked in 10 minutes.
JG
Luckily, I was able to find wonderful little tear drop eggplants. This is really delicious! I made it exactly as directed with jaggery, serrano chili and asafetida. It reminded me of what I really loved about Indian food when I travelled there. Next time, I will try peanut oil instead of olive, but there is such a small amount, I wonder if it'll make a difference? Anyway, really delicious. Will make again.
Colleen
This recipe worked well in the Instant pot.
Betsy Geist
The instructions say to add the oil in step one, to the filling.
KenK
Instead of steaming try frying the eggplant browning them in a pan which is a South Indian treatment. The peanut mixture takes on a great crunch where it is exposed to the pan and the oil brings out the flavor of the eggplants. As I am partial to South Indian style I eliminate the sugar as the peanuts give it enough sweetness for my tastes.
Jennie
I used long Asian eggplants and instead of stuffing them, I put half the peanut mixture on the bottom of the pot, all the (sliced) eggplant atop it, and the rest of the peanut mixture atop the eggplant. With the addition of the water, the eggplant cooked in a liquid peanut sauce. I suppose this is not how the dish is supposed to turn out, but it was absolutely fantastic. I used peanut instead of olive oil. I would recommend rice rather than flatbreads to soak up the copious sauce.
Melinda
Oops - one more note - I only had salted peanuts so only used a teaspoon of salt. Came out perfect
Michael
The olive oil is used to moisten the peanut mixture. It is in Step 1, second sentence.
Heba
I used dark brown sugar (realized I didn’t have other kinds once I was already in it, and upped the Kashmiri chili because I’m also missing peppers but this was so easy to make and so good.
michela
Will make again, but cut the salt and probably won’t bother with stuffing the eggplants- would be fine just dicing them and then making it more like a stew. I didn’t stir while it was simmering which was a mistake- burned a lot of the sauce on the bottom.
Nina
I didn't have chickpea flour so I left it out. I had jalapeno but not serranos so I used that. I made a cucumber raita on the side and squeezed some lemon on the eggplant when it was done. The 1 TBSP of salt looked crazy. I used salted roasted peanuts supplemented by less than a tsp of salt and I could have reduced the salt even more. This was a spectacular dish. I will definitely make it again!
linda s
Only 1 teaspoon of salt!!
Pam F
REALLY good, made just as directed. Only thing: unless the eggplant fresh (local) I would cut it and salt it for a good long time (rinse off the salt prior to continuing) to offset the bitterness associated with many eggplant!
Katharine
This is amazingly delicious, and so quick. Sue Li’s Sweet & Sour Eggplant with Garlic Chips has been my go-to for Japanese eggplants for years. This is my new go-to for baby eggplants. Thank you!
A cook
Used asian eggplants and made them into "boats" by scooping a long narrow trench along the top as they lay lengthwise in the pan The scooped out part was peeled then slotted between the eggplants in the pan where it could cook down and become part of the sauce. the trench was filled with the peanut mixture. I'll use less kosher salt next time. a super-tight fitting lid would help this dish cook quicker--my big frying pan with the looser lid went way slower than my small pan with the tighter
RevLiz
AT LONG LAST! YOU GOT MY FAMILY TO EAT EGGPLANT! I came home with those "baby" eggplant from the Indian grocery store (which I now know I can also get at the Asian supermarkets). I searched around, and found this recipe. Made it exactly as written, except the asafetida. The vegetarian eggplant-hater loved it, the omnivore was actually sorry he was too full to eat more. There are no leftovers.
Nancy
This was a nice twist on the usual eggplant flavorings. I used the Indian eggplant and they were quite good. I think next time I might try warmer spices like those in garam masala.
Modifications
This is really yum and so simple. I used Icelandic licorice salt once, which was such a good but subtle substitution, and ancho Chile powder as well.
Robin
Really tasty. I added less salt but it did need some. Maybe because I used unsalted peanuts? This is so simple to make and has great flavors. I used a mix of small eggplants and some cut Pumfu ( tofu made from pumpkin seeds). Worked well
Joan W
I had made this before as written and it was great. When visiting with my granddaughter who has a severe peanut allergy, I used almonds and it came out fine.
Amanda
So delicious! I substituted for cashews (what I had) and it was very yummy. I didn't think it was too salty, like a previous comment mentioned.
Misty
I used 4 medium purple eggplants from my garden, cut in half, then I "stuffed" them according to directions. I skipped the fussy stovetop and cooked this in an oiled Le Creuset on a bed of about 20 garden shishitos. I baked it all in a 400° oven with the lid on for 45 minutes, then took the lid off and moved it to an upper rack for an additional 20. I served it over rice with a sprinkle of cilantro and a side of Afghan chick-peas. One of the best vegan recipes I've found in the NYT!
Vicki
I one and a halved to 2X'd the peanut mixture and water to allow more tasty sauce for accompanying brown or white rice. (Husbands request after making this the first time). I found large Indian eggplants to be a little "seedy" (big surprise, right?) so in future will use smaller ones or fat Japanese eggplants. Was delicious with a nice raita which helped cool things when I got enthusiastic with the Serrano chili!
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