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One of the most delicious and super easy recipes for eggplant. Crispy, crunchy, and super soft to bite . These Baingan Bhaja or eggplant discs are the perfect vegan side for any meal.

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Crispy and crunchy from the outside and soft and melt-in-the-mouth on the inside. Baingan Bhaja, or fried eggplant discs, is one of the most famous Indian dishes made of eggplant. No Bengali vegetarian meal is complete without it. It goes well with rice, poori, or khichdi.

Growing up, this was my favorite eggplant dish. I enjoyed it with white rice and lentils. When I started cooking, it was a pleasant surprise to find out how easy it was to prepare.

You can make it two ways. One is without any batter, just by shallow frying it. Another way is to dip it in gram flour and rice flour batter and deep fry it.

My mom used to make the shallow fried one, and I love both. On special occasions, I make deep-fried ones.

On regular days, however, I try to cut down on oil, so I shallow fry them in a cast iron pan /heavy-bottomed pan.

I love to air fry them as well. However, if you are making baingan bhaja in large quantities, baking them on a wire rack in the oven is the most practical solution.

How To Prepare Eggplant for Frying-

Essential preparation is the key to making perfect baingan bhaja. You can shallow or deep fry; the ideal texture depends on your preparation.

First, wash the eggplant and dry it with a paper towel. Slicing the eggplant is the next step, and the ideal thickness is 1.5 inches to 2 inches. Please do not make it very thick or thin.

Then, coat eggplant slices with turmeric powder salt(using a little red chili powder is optional at this stage). Keep them on the wire rack after coating.

Also, make sure you keep something under the wire rack. Please keep it for 30 minutes. You will see that the eggplant has released some water this time, which is the secret of making crispy eggplants.

How Can You Use Leftovers?

Reheat shallow fried eggplants on a flat griddle or air fryer, but do not use a microwave. Microwaves will make it soggy. If you are reheating deep-fried ones, however, use an oven.

Bake them on a wire rack to prevent soggy bottoms. I love to use an air fryer most of the time for this purpose as it takes less time and keeps them crunchy.

I strongly recommend eating it after frying or when it's hot. It tastes fantastic, and I also believe you won't stop after eating it.

How to Make Batter for Frying the Eggplant

I prefer a batter of gram flour, rice flour (you can substitute with corn starch ), a little red chili powder, turmeric powder, salt, and water.

This batter is gluten-free. Also, do not make this batter too thick or thin; you need a running batter that lightly coats the eggplant slices.

How To Fry Baingan Bhaja

I prefer to use a cast iron pan for shallow frying. Furthermore, a little dusting of rice flour, turmeric powder, salt, and red chili powder on the eggplant is done before shallow frying.

Doing it in a cast-iron pan is easy as it doesn't involve a lot of oil and always comes out perfectly.

For deep frying, you need a heavy-bottomed wok or cast-iron skillet. Doing it on medium /high flame is essential as it does not absorb much oil at that temperature.

You May Want To Check These Eggplant Recipes

Kashmiri Dahi Baingan/Eggplant in Kashmiri Yogurt Sauce.

Roasted Eggplant Mash/Baingan Ka Bharta

Eggplant Tikka Masala/Baingan Tikka Masala

New Recipes

Baingan Bhaja/ Eggplant Bengali Style

Smita

Perfectly sliced eggplant discs are dipped in a flavourful batter and deep fried till they are crispy from the outside and soft on the inside. Goes well with rice, poori, or as a simple side. Vegan and gluten-free.

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Total Time 20

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian Cuisine.

Servings

Ingredients

8-10 Eggplant Slices
½ Tsp Salt
½ Tsp Turmeric Powder

For Making Batter

2 Tbsp Gram Flour
3 Tbsp Rice Flour
½ Tsp Turmeric Powder
¼ Tsp Salt,
Water ,for making a thick pourable batter.
Oil,for deep frying.

Instructions

Wash and dry the eggplant .
Slice it into slightly thick (1.5 to 2 inch )Pieces.
Coat them with turmeric and salt and leave them in colander ,bowl or wire rack for 30 minutes.They will release water.
Prepare the batter with all the ingredients.Batter should be lump free.
Take a wok /heavy bottomed pan /cast iron pan.
Add oil for deep frying.
Dip eggplant disc in the batter.Shake off the excess batter.
Fry on medium/high flame ,for 1-5 minute on each side or till they look golden brown on both sides.
Place it on the wire sheet to prevent soggy bottom.Do not place them on paper towel .This will make them soggy.
If needed just use paper towel to absorb excess oil.
Serve when it is still hot.
Enjoy.