Nellur Brinjal Fry (Andhra Coconut Brinjal Fry)

I've tried out numerous brinjal recipes mainly because I love this mushy, delicious vegetable. Today I tried out a completely different and variety brinjal dish. Here it is perfectly cooked in an aromatic coconut gravy which accouts for its superb taste. It is a popular side dish of Andhra Pradesh and is known as Nellur Brinjal fry. 

Ingredients

1/2 kg - dark, round Brinjal (cut into 6 pieces vertically)
1 cup - dry Coconut
1 cup - onion, chopped
1 tsp - Garlic
2 tsp - cumin
1 tsp - mustard
1/4 tsp - Turmeric powder
Chilly-2
Salt to taste
1 tsp - Curry leaves
4 tbsp - cooking oil

Method

Grind masala with onion, coconut, chilly and garlic with 1 tsp of cumin and curry leaves.
Fry oil in a kadai, add cumin, mustard and curry leaves.
After the mustard splutters, add chopped brinjal and turmeric.
Fry till half cooked, then keep aside.
Add masala to the remaining oil in the kadai and fry for 10 mins.
Add the fried brinjal to masala, add salt and stir.
Remove from fire after the gravy gets well coated on the brinjal slices and well fried.