Recipe!

Having Baigan Choka but don’t know how to make it?

Follow these easy steps to yummy Baigan Choka Paradise!

1. (Recipe credit- WizzyTheStick)

1 large eggplant

4 garlic cloves

1 medium tomatoes (seeded and cut into 6 wedges)

1⁄4 cup onion, finely chopped

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1⁄8 teaspoon scotch bonnet pepper (minced) (optional)

Method

1. Wash eggplant and make slits in it with a knife.
2. Peel garlic cloves and stick them into the slits made in the eggplant.
3. Insert tomato wedges into the slits.
4. Coat the eggplant with a teaspoon of oil.
5. Roast over an open flame (for example, a gas cooker) until soft. Do not grill because the taste will not be the same. The open flame imparts a smokey flavour which gives this dish its signature flavour.

6. When the eggplant is soft, slit the charred skin lengthways with a knife and scrape out the soft somewhat stringy pulp. Discard skin.
7. Mash the pulp, tomato, and roasted garlic in a bowl with a fork or pop it into your blender if you want a nice smooth texture.
8. Add 1 teaspoon oil to a non-stick frying pan and cook 1/4 cup onion until fragrant but not translucent. (You want them to still have some crunch to them but not quite the sharp raw onion taste. This is a personal preference some people prefer the raw onions.)
9. Add the barely cooked, finely chopped onion, salt to taste, and scotch bonnet pepper to the eggplant pulp.
10. Mix thoroughly and enjoy with some hot oil rotis!