Serving food for the elderly is a huge challenge with taste buds and health conditions no longer the same with young people.
Eggplant is not a popular vegetable for many people to like. Either the purple eggplant or the green type of eggplant sometimes gives off a bitter taste, if not properly prepared. But with certain tricks, we can avoid eggplant that will taste bitter.
To be honest, I've never had an eggplant that tasted bitter when cooked this long. But from the people around that I hear, they often find bitter purple eggplant.
So, this time I ventured to try to serve purple eggplant with a cooking method that I had never tried before, namely with curry gravy.
Tips to Avoid Bitter Eggplant
Choose eggplant that is not too young, but not too old either. It can make the eggplant bitter when cooked.
Once you've found eggplant of the right age, soaking the pre-cut eggplant in saltwater is a simple way to prevent the eggplant from becoming bitter after cooking.
Usually, I serve purple eggplant only by frying it beforehand and then doused with Sambal (chili paste with red onion and garlic). With a spicy sauce, I tasted delicious purple eggplant without a hint of bitterness. This way is quite popular in the area I live.
Meanwhile, for the presentation of eggplant with curry, it is more popular to use green eggplant or round eggplant instead of purple eggplant.
On several occasions, I've also seen purple eggplant served for spicy sauce stuffing by grilling it first, then taking only the flesh, without the skin.
What's a popular way in your area to serve purple eggplant? Or in the simplest way, we can serve eggplant only by frying it in flour. That will make delicious crispy eggplants.
But now I have a new challenge in my house. My mother can no longer eat spicy food. In fact, in the past spicy eggplants were our favorite recipe. The recipe from my mother remains a popular one. But due to some reasons for my mother's health condition, we ended up having to avoid spicy dishes, including this recipe for spicy eggplants.
So, curry gravy is the best choice for my mother. Then, what if I serve fried eggplant with curry gravy? Let's see!
Making Curry Paste
We have to make curry paste first. If you find an instant curry paste on the market, then that's no problem because it will help you prepare this recipe better, than you have to prepare fresh ingredients. Maybe you will find it difficult to find fresh ingredients. So, using instant products is worth it.
Usually, instant products are supported by ingredients that have been converted into powder. Or, in a condition that has become curry paste. I often find products like this in the area where I live. I hope you can find similar products at Asian grocery stores in your area.
For the curry paste, I used fresh turmeric, ground turmeric, fresh ginger, fresh candlenuts, red chilies, onion, garlic, and coriander powder.
Then blend all the ingredients, you can use vegetable oil or water. Add salt, as well as additional seasoning such as mushroom broth powder if you are used to using it in your seasoning.
Additional Spices and Herbs
To strengthen the curry gravy, I usually add curry leaves, kaffir lime leaves, bay leaves, and cinnamon sticks.
But unfortunately, this time I didn't have any curry leaves in stock, so I relied heavily on bay leaves and kaffir lime leaves, and cinnamon sticks to enhance the taste and fragrance of the curry gravy.
MAKING FRIED EGGPLANTS
After finishing with the curry paste, it's time for us to make the fried eggplants. Here, we have to fry the eggplants with the deep-fry method.
After cutting the purple eggplant into small pieces, don't forget to soak it in saltwater. This is also to prevent the eggplant will taste bitter.
Then, when it will be fried, drain for a while. Fry the purple eggplant and don't forget to turn it over and set it aside.
Serving Fried Eggplants With Curry Gravy
After finishing making the fried eggplants, it's time to cook the curry paste. If you don't use oil when you make the paste, then heat a little oil first to sauté the curry paste. But if you have used vegetable oil in a mixture of curry ingredients when making the paste, then immediately stir-fry the paste in a pan.
Then, add the spices and herbs: bay leaves, kaffir lime leaves, curry leaves, and cinnamon sticks. Cook while continuously stirring until fragrant. Add enough water so the paste doesn't burn.
After that, add the fried eggplants. Cook briefly until a simmer, then add the coconut milk. Here, I use about 100 ml of coconut milk. Cook until the gravy thickens to your liking.
Before serving, don't forget to taste the curry gravy. Add salt and or additional flavors according to your taste.
Serve while warm. You can add rice or vermicelli as a complement to the eggplant curry.
What I like the most about this recipe (which I've never tried before pairing it with fried eggplants) is the heavenly scent of gravy! I swear. That's because it uses fresh spices and herbs that create pleasure from the smell. It's a taste booster. <3
I'm glad my mother liked this dish because of the delicious gravy. Well, for me, the best serving method for purple eggplant is with spicy sauce, chili paste with onion, and garlic. But, this recipe is very helpful for those of you who can't eat spicy dishes.
I hope my recipe this time can provide new useful insights. Don't forget to share your thoughts on my recipe, and I'd love to receive your feedback. Have a great day, HIVE Lovers!
I hope you can find what you deserve to find today. Have a great day, good people, HIVE Lovers!
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Best Regards,
Anggrek Lestari
Anggrek Lestari is an Indonesian fiction writer who has published two major books. Now She is a full-time content creator. She has a goal to share life, poem, and food content that makes others happy and can get inspiration.
Make sure you follow her blog as well for some interesting discussions about life other than food.
If you need a copywriter for your projects, Anggrek Lestari will be ready to help you.
Contact Person: authoranggreklestari@gmail.com
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