Good afternoon, Steemians!
While at work today, I watched a video about cooking Vegan Indian food. I have loved Indian food for a while, and it’s said that 30% of India’s population is vegetarian, so they have many vegetarian and vegan options that are staples in the Indian diet.
I want to share what I did to create this dish.
I began with making a ginger garlic paste, which I still have in the fridge for many uses in the future.
To make the paste, you need about equal parts cubed ginger and garlic cloves. I actually used more ginger than garlic. Put it in the blender, add a little bit of water, tiny bit of salt, and a tiny bit of oil (I used coconut).
Next, I baked the eggplants (2) in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 45 minutes. While this was going on, I began simmering some cumin and coriander seeds in some coconut oil in a pot. I then added half an onion, and let it carmelize on medium heat for a few minutes.
Then, I added the ginger garlic paste. I used about two tablespoons. I wasn’t shy. I then added a whole bag of spinach, added a bit more water and covered the pot (medium heat) for about 30-40 minutes, stirring every once in a while.
I then added some split red lentils, stirred and covered (add more water if you want)
After about 20-30 minutes, the lentils will be cooked through, and the spinach will be cooked down to almost 5x less than it’s original space. I then add Garam Masala, salt, pepper, turmeric, and red chili powder.
Take the eggplant out of the oven, skin it, and add the cooked eggplant to the mixture. Stir for a few minutes, and the dish should be about ready.
I love this dish with some of bread, and didn’t have any traditional flatbread, so I opted for a piece of whole grain wheat bread
If you ever have stews, you might like to sop up the juices with bread. I definitely like to do this because the salty and sweet mix of the stew and bread taste great to me.