Vangyache Bharit-वांग्याचे भरीत

Vangyache Bharit is a popular Maharashtrian Veg Preparation that is prepared with roasted eggplants or Aubergine, mashed and cooked with few basic ingredients like Onions, Tomato, Green Chilies, Ginger and Garlic. This spicy and flavorful preparation is best enjoyed with some Jowar or Bajra Bhakri or some plain phulkas.

Vangyache Bharit enjoys a cult status in Maharashtrian culinary arena. To make it more relatable, you can think of this dish as a form of Baingan Bharta. There are several different ways Bharta or Bharit is made in different parts of India. In Maharashtra too, there are varied ways this preparation is made. Though the process of roasting and mashing the Egg plants remain fairly similar across these different ways, what differs is the spices or ingredients added in Bharit.

If you are a food aficionado for few years you would begin to associate a dish with a particular place- a restaurant or a Dhaba where you like to eat that same dish every time you pay a visit. Though Bharit is a fairly common dish that you would inevitably find on a menu card of any Maharashtrian restaurant, I have come to associate Vangyache Bharit with a place called Pratapgad. Pratapgad, a popular tourist destination, located in Satara district of Maharashtra literally translates to ‘Valor Fort’.

Pratapgad is a fairly easy trek and being nothing more than a novice trekker I have come to like this fort for the ease of trekking besides the delicious food available in the vicinity to the fort. There are several makeshift shops put up inside the fort premises that sell from books, toys, imitation jewelries to the shop providing juices, buttermilk and delicious food. My favorite meal that I have every time I visit the fort is –Pithla, Mirchi cha Thecha, Bharit and Bhakri. We wash down this spicy meal with couple of glasses of plain buttermilk.

Make this simple yet delicious meal for your weekend lunch –Vangyache Bharit in Maharashtrian way and relish it with bread of your choice. I like to eat mine with hot Jowar Bhakri. Share your feedback with us in comments section below.

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Vangyache Bharit-वांग्याचे भरीत

Rating  4.0 from 1 reviews

Prep time:  10 mins

Cook time:  40 mins

Total time:  50 mins

Serves: 4-5

Ingredients

• 2 brinjals/eggplants big size ( 600 gm )
• 2 big onions ( 180 gm )
• 1 medium sized tomato ( 80 gm )
• ¼ cup coriander
• 5-6 green chillies
• 8-10 garlic cloves
• 1 inch ginger
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp asafoetida
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 3 tbsp oil
• Salt as per taste

Instructions

1. Wash the brinjals thoroughly with water to clean the dust. Wipe them off with dry cloth. Make 4-5 insertions on each brinjal and coat the with little oil. Roast them on open flame till crisp brown.
2. Peel off the brinjals when cold, and mash their pulp either with masher or with knife.
3. Chop the onions, tomatoes and coriander finely.
4. Crush the garlic, ginger and green chillies in mortar and pestle coarsely. If you are using grinder then grind them coarsely without water.
5. Heat the oil in kadhai, temper with mustard seeds. When they crackle, add cumin seeds and asafoetida. Add the chopped onions and saute till translucent.
6. Onions may turn translucent in 5 minutes on medium flame. Add turmeric and coarse paste made in step 4. Saute on low flame till it loses its raw flavour.
7. Add chopped tomatoes with little salt. This would speed up the process of cooking tomatoes. Mix the tomatoes on medium flame. Then lower the flame and cover the kadhai to cook the tomatoes.
8. When tomatoes are cooked and it starts leaving the oil from sides , add mashed brinjals.
9. Add salt as per taste. Saute the mashed brinjals on low flame . Make sure it does not stick to the bottom of the kadhai. Cook till it leaves off the sides of pan, around for 7-8 minutes.
10. Switch off the flame , and garnish with chopped coriander.
11. Serve with Jowar or Bajra Bhakri and don’t forget to serve raw onions and green chillies at side.
12. Tip :
13. In winters, this bharit is a must cooked dish specially for Hurda Party in farms in Maharashtra. If you like to eat spicy food then don’t hesitate to increase green chilies in preparation.

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