Although Indians do not eat appetizer courses as such, there are many Indian dishes that can be served as a first course. This eggplant dish is one of them. I often serve it that way, with a slice of French bread on the side and some Pinot Grigio to polish it off. You can, of course, also serve it as the vegetable dish with the main course. (I love it with the Tandoori-Style Duck Breasts, page 103.)

　　

Ingredients

serves 4¿6

　　One medium-sized eggplant, about 1 pound

　　6 tablespoons olive or corn oil

　　1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch-thick half rings

　　1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds

　　1/2 teaspoon whole fennel seeds

　　1/2 cup tomato puree

　　1 teaspoon salt

　　1 teaspoon sugar

　　1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

　　

Step 1

Cut the eggplant lengthways into 3 slabs. Now cut the slabs into chunky segments that are about 2” × 1 1/4” × 1 1/4".

　　

Step 2

Pour the oil into a large frying pan or sauté pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the onions, the cumin, the fennel, and the eggplant. Stir and fry for about 5 minutes or until the onions just start to brown. Add the tomato puree, salt, sugar, cayenne, and 1 1/4 cups water. Bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat to low, and simmer gently, turning the eggplant pieces over now and then, until they are really tender, about 30–35 minutes.

　　Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Buy the full book from Amazon.