Vankaya Bhajji or Vankaya Pappu with stepwise photos. Vankaya Bhajji is a delicious mash made with eggplants (bangalore kathirikkai) and tur dal along with whole spices that is served along with rice.
I love all forms of brinjals and it happens to be one of the most vegetable in my home as my children also share my love for it.
You really don't want to miss out on the food coma that you are bound to experience when you have this pappu mixed with hot rice and ghee for lunch.
If you like "Baingan ka Bharta” made using egg plants, then I’m sure you will also like this vankaya pappu.
I always use the keerai chatti to make this as the taste and texture is multiplied manifold.
The “keerai chatti” that I had was my prized possession. It happened be a heirloom piece gifted by my grandma.
In Ponmalai, Trichy where I grew up, the weekly Sunday “sandhai” was popular for good quality earthenwares.
Most of all our earthenwares are from there only and are old at least by 2 decades but still going strong.
When my “Keerai chatti” cracked during one of my house moving, I was totally heartbroken over losing that heirloom piece.
But then my MIL bought one for me from her native “sandhai” which I love using too.
Using a keerai chatti over a blender especially to mash dal along with any vegetable or greens is totally incomparable.
The texture is simply spot on not like some soupy messy blob that you get while you blend or use an immersion blender.
So if you have a keerai chatti, I highly suggest you put it to good use not just to make this "vankaya pappu” but for mashing other pappu recipes too.
Just like the texture, the taste is freaking delicious too.
Stepwise Vankaya Bhajji recipe:
Chop Eggplant (Aubergine) and tomatoes roughly. Slit the green chillies. Wash tur dal and keep it ready.
Place the eggplants, tomatoes, chillies, tur dal, spice powder along with water in the pressure cooker and cook for 3 to 4 whistles.
Transfer the entire contents to the keerai chatti otherwise use a blender or an immersion blender.
Mash well using a "maththu" or a potato masher till all the ingredients disintegrates.
Do the tempering, add it to the chatti and once again mash everything together.
Transfer to a serving bowl. Vankaya Bhajji or Vankaya Pappu is ready.
Points to note while making this bhajji:
- Instead of using Aubergines, you can also do this with regular striped purple brinjals.
- Make sure to choose only tender ones that does not have lots of seeds in them.
- Use only the “keerai chatti” to get authentic taste and texture.
- The bhajji should be thick and after mashing you should not be able to identify anything that you have added to the recipe.
- If using blender or hand blender, make sure to use pulse mode & pause. Do not grind to a paste.
- Use your judgement as all 3 forms of chillies are being used.
- Mash them all while it is still hot as it will be difficult to manually mash it once it cools down.
- Add salt only after you have mashed roughly and not before pressure cooking.
I’m sure you will also like this Peerkangai Kadayal, Dosakayya Pappu, Zucchini Kootu, Dal Khichdi and Sigappu Mulai Keerai Masiyal
Vankaya Bhajji Recipe below:
Recipe
Vankaya Bhajji - Vankaya Pappu
Ingredients
- Aubergine or Egg Plant - 1
- Tur dal - ½ cup
- Tomatoes - 3
- Green chillies - 2
- Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
- Turmeric powder - ½ tsp
- Tamarind - 1 small marble size
- Salt - to taste
For tempering:
- Mustard seeds - ½ tsp
- Whole dry red chillies - 2
- Garlic - 6 to 8 nos crushed
- Oil - 1 tbsp
Instructions
Preparation:
- Wash and cut the Aubergine or Eggplant roughly and place in water to prevent discoloration.
- Quarter the tomatoes, slit the green chillies and set aside.
- Wash the tur dal and set aside.
How to make vankaya bhajji:
- To a pressure cooker, add tur dal, aubergine, tomatoes, green chillies, tamarind, red chilli powder and turmeric powder.
- Add ¾ to 1 cup water and mix well.
- Close with lid and cook for 3 to 4 whistles. Open after the pressure releases naturally.
- If you have a “Kal chatti or Keerai Chatti” transfer the whole dal mixture into it immediately.
- Mash it well using a “maththu” till everything disintegrates.
- Else, you can either transfer to a blender or using a hand blender if you have, pulse till the contents are mashed to a pulp.
- Do not grind to a paste or to a soup consistency.
For the tempering:
- Heat a kadai with oil.
- Add mustard seeds and once it splutters add whole dry red chillies and crushed garlic
- Sauté till the garlic changes to brown colour and the aroma arises.
- Transfer the tempering to the mashed dal in the “Keerai Chatti”.
- Add salt to your taste.
- Once again mash well till they all come together.
- Transfer to a serving bowl.
- Vankaya bhajji is ready.
- Mix this with hot steaming rice to which a dash of ghee has been added and dig in.
uma shankar
something very new will surely try
CinnamonNChillies
Bookmarking this. This won;d be wonderful to have with both rice and roti!!!
Prathima Rao
Thats a delicious dal!!!! I loved the process of making it too!!
Prathima Rao
Prats Corner
schmetterlingwords
Kal chatti and mathu are indispensible to the taste of this dish. I completely agree with you as it won't taste the same with the use of a blender. I'm missing traditionally made daal. Aubergine with daal is a new to me. Thanks for sharing this Andra dish. Looks delicious 🙂
Shobha Kamath
This is new to me. Looks good! Will give it a try.
Thanks for sharing.
Sobha Shyam
very delicious dal, new to me, great clicks dear..
julie
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soujanya
very delicious...n interesting....
Now Serving
that is a very yummy and healthy recipe with aubergine 🙂
Swati Sapna
This sounds excellent!! And being A Telugu girl myself, surprisingly I have never heard of this dal!!! Now I'm really curious and will definitely give it a try 🙂
divya
Looks yummy and tempting..
Archana
Looks delicious. Will make this
Reva
Simple dish ...perfect with idli, dosa and roti..:)
Superb recipe..:)
Reva
Priya
Am missing this kal chatti, dal looks super delicious and flavouful..
cookingvarieties
hi radhika, this looks tasty and deliciously spicy. i have eaten brinjals with dhal before , but prepared with a slightly different ingredients.
we add chicken stock 🙂
Hyma
oh...the kal chatti and mathu makes the dish all the more irresistible! yumm...this will be so good with rice, idli or dosa or pongal too...lovely recipe! thx for sharing!
Mina Joshi
Very interesting and delicious dish
julie
wow..looks lovely..yummy dal!!
Vardhini
Yumm .. love brinjals. Like your clay pot Radhika. 🙂
Alpana
That looks very yummy.......Bookmarked.
Shanthi
Yummy dish and love it anytime
Kavi...
Another fantastic recipe! I'm running out of compliments! 🙂
Ruchik Randhap
Something new to me, never tasted aubergine dal..but im definitely going to! Looks very delicious Radhika!
Jay
this is one of my fav dish...perfect version..:)
Rajeni
Great cliks. Looks very tempting.
Sudha Sabarish
Tht's a yummy brinjal dal.
Nirmala's kitchen
Looks delicious!!!!Will soon try this week end.
Roshna Feroz
will surely try sooon!!!
Kaveri
This dal looks nice and thick and very yum..never used aubergines with dal..