Eggplant Curry

It has happened!  An eggplant dish, starring eggplant, that actually tastes good.  This curry uses the smokiness and the creaminess of the vegetable to make a comforting bowl for lunch or dinner.  The trick to making eggplant meaty instead of mushy is to maximize  surface area, dehydrate as much as possible, and let it cook until it almost burns. Truth: I think I did burn it a little bit because I got distracted momentarily.  Still tasty.  I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 Italian or globe eggplant
• 3 Tbsp canola oil
• copious salt
• 1 large tomato
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• vegetables: I used 1 yellow bell pepper and 2 banana peppers: destemmed, split, deribbed, sliced.

Use a knife and a cutting board to slice the skin from the eggplant, leaving only the white flesh.  Split the eggplant in half, and proceed to dice into cubes a little smaller than…well, dice.  Throw the dice into a colander, and coat with a lot of salt, up to 1/4 cup.  Put the colander with a plate underneath it in the fridge for a few hours (I did 8 because I fell asleep).  Afterward,  wash the eggplant thoroughly in water to expunge much salt as possible, and then squeeze out as much water as possible using some paper towels.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 3 minutes.  Add the eggplant, and let it sit and sizzle on one side before turning the dice to cook another side.  Don’t be afraid of burning–as long as you hear a brisk sizzle, you’re still evaporating water.  I cooked my eggplant pieces alone for upwards of 15 minutes.  Add the spices, then give them a stir for 15 seconds, then add the tomato.  After 3-4 minutes of mushing the tomato pieces, add the peppers and stir periodically.  Cook until the peppers are tender but still hold their shape, about 5 minutes.  This dish shouldn’t need any additional salt, but taste and adjust for seasonings anyway.  Again, if the spice level is too high, you can add plain yogurt (this will make it even creamier).

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