Pickled Eggplant Adds To A Seductive Legacy

Canning, preserving and putting up the summer fruits and vegetables are in full swing. In September, we turn to salty, sugary, slightly oily and extra spicy brinjal achar, or eggplant pickle. It’s a nice contrast after we preserved tangy pickled onions in August and sweet apricot chutney in July.

Eggplant a favorite in many cultures
Aubergine and brinjal are just some of the names for the common eggplant, Solanum melongena. A part of the Solanaceae family — the deadly nightshades — in which tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and tobaccos reside, eggplants have seduced cooks and eaters alike in nearly every culture.

Eggplants are probably native to tropical Asia and domesticated there, with varieties and global culinary uses too numerous to mention all. On a trip to the Union Square Greenmarket in New York City a few weeks ago, I spotted six eggplant varieties at one stall alone.

The alchemical seduction of eggplant is so complete that Imam bayildi, or “the Imam fainted,” is the name bestowed upon a popular Turkish dish with eggplant at its center. Besotted with its exquisite taste, the Imam literally swooned from the intensity and beauty of flavors, with tomatoes and onions intensifying the dish’s effect.

South Asians know how to cook and preserve this versatile fruit. They roast it, stuff it, sauté it, fry it, preserve it — and hope to protect it. (For a quick look into the controversy that has trailed genetically modified eggplant, check out the sidebar below the following recipe.)

Brinjal achar enhances any non-spiced meal. As a child, I gobbled this pickle by the tablespoon with plain rice or chapatti or with a bit of yogurt. Don’t be intimidated by the number of ingredients; just make your list and find your spices. If you want complex flavors and multiple layers revealed to your senses, then jump right in.

Brinjal achar - This takes 45 minutes to an hour to complete and will yield about 12 ounces.

Ingredients
1 cup sesame, mustard or olive oil (Sesame oil is nutty and mustard oil is strong and pungent; olive oil has a more neutral flavor.)
3 ounces whole dry red chilies; heat varies, so adjust according to taste
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
2 teaspoons fenugreek seeds
1 pound Asian eggplants (small, purple-white striated) long variety (Ping tong, for example), chopped into small pieces with the skin intact
3 to 5 cloves of garlic
2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
¼ cup water
1 to 2 tablespoons vinegar
1 to 2 tablespoons tamarind paste
4 tablespoons salt
½ cup to 1 cup sugar, depending on desired sweetness
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon fennel seeds

Equipment
Spice grinder
Blender or food processor
2 large pans to roast spices and sauté garlic-ginger paste and eggplant
Three 4-ounce Mason jars

Directions
1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan and roast the dry chilies on medium-high heat, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and cool.
2. In the same oil, add cumin, black mustard and fenugreek seeds and roast while stirring, 2 to 4 minutes, on medium-high heat until mustard seeds start to pop and fenugreek seeds turn brown. Remove and cool. Use this pan with remaining oil for Step 6.
3. Place cooled roasted chilies and seeds in a spice grinder and grind. Save for Step 8.
4. In another pan, place 1 to 2 tablespoons oil on medium high heat, add chopped eggplant and stir occasionally until eggplant reduces to about half the amount, 15 to 20 minutes.
5. In a blender or food processor, add garlic and ginger with a bit of water to make a paste. Use the same blender in Step 7.
6. In the same pan that you roasted the spices, add a teaspoon of oil and the garlic-ginger paste and sauté until brown, 7 to 10 minutes.
7. In the blender, add vinegar, tamarind and salt and blend.
8. To the sautéed eggplant, add roasted and ground spices, garlic-ginger paste and remaining oil. Stir for 5 minutes.
9. To the above mixture, add the mixture of vinegar, tamarind and salt and stir completely.
10. Finally, add sugar, turmeric and fennel seeds, continue to stir and simmer to reduce water content and until oil separates out again.
11.  While hot, place in canning jars, cover and let cool.
12. Once cool, place the jars in the refrigerator, where they should keep for up to three months.

Genetically modified eggplant
The rich biodiversity of eggplants in South Asia was challenged in India in 2010 with a request to introduce a genetically modified Bt brinjal variety. Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Co., or Mahyco, is the Indian subsidiary of U.S. biotech company Monsanto, which developed the Bt brinjal. With wide and vociferous protests occurring throughout brinjal-producing states in India, the Ministry of Environment and Forests issued a moratorium on the release of Bt brinjal until further appraisal of its safety. Minister Jairam Ramesh cited the following concerns as summarized in The Hindu:

• Lack of a clear consensus among the scientific community

• Opposition from 10 state governments, especially from the major brinjal-producing states

• Questions raised about the safety and testing process

• Lack of an independent biotechnology regulatory authority

• Negative public sentiment and fears among consumers

• Lack of a global precedent

On the other side of the debate, advocates say Bt brinjal will boost production, reduce pesticide use and support distressed farmers. Environmental activists such as Vandana Shiva of seed keeper group Navdanya have cited holes in these arguments for supporting the introduction of genetically modified organisms. Upon declaring the moratorium, Shiva elaborated on the criteria for evaluating GMO crops before introduction, the most important being the strengthening of seed and food sovereignty on a national scale. For more on how the Indian government is addressing the introduction of other genetically modified crops, read this article in The Economic Times.

Originally published on Zester Daily, September 2013.