Make Ahead

Grilled Eggplant 'Gothsu' dip

by:
January 16, 2011
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0 Ratings
  • Makes 1 cup
Author Notes

Gothsu is a south Indian dish made with grilled eggplants. Its one of those really easy to make quick fixes that grandma whipped up for a weekend brunch of warm rice & lentil porridge known as Pongal. The traditional version involves grilling an Italian eggplant, discarding the charred skin & combining the soft pulp in seasoned tamarind extract. My 'dip' version involves combining the tamarind pulp & eggplant with a touch of sesame oil to yield a smooth silky finish which complements the piquant smoky flavor of the gothsu. The dip works great with pita bread or toasted naan. —Panfusine

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the gothsu
  • 1 Italian eggplant
  • 1 lime sized amount of dried tamarind pods
  • 1-2 dried arbol chillies
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 pinch asafetida powder
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1/4 cup water
  • For the tadka (Sputtered seasoning)
  • 2 teaspoons sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seds
  • 1 sprig curry leaves
Directions
  1. Rub the eggplant skin with sesame oil. On an open stove top flame grill the eggplant till the flesh is soft & the skin is charred well.
  2. Set aside to cool and then remove the charred skin. If the eggplant is riddled with a lot of mature seeds then try to remove the seeds as much as possible, else leave the seeds in. Try to discard any of the liquid from the eggplant. it tends to have some charred skin that affects the taste.
  3. Add 1/4 cup of water to the tamarind & heat in the microwave for ~ 1 minute. Allow to cool & strain out as much pulp as possible. Discard any seeds and fibrous matter from the tamarind. You may want to taste the pulp at this point, to gauge the sourness and adjust seasonings accordingly. Add broken arbol chillies, salt & asafetida.
  4. Add the eggplant and tamarind mixture to a food processor bowl & puree for ~ 5 S.
  5. While the processor is running, drizzle ~ 2 tbsp of sesame oil into the eggplant mix till it emulsifies.
  6. Transfer to a serving dish. Heat remaining sesame oil. Add mustard & let it sputter. Finish the gothsu with the mustard 'tadka' and torn up curry leaves.
  7. Serve with with Pita bread, grilled naan, or corn chips & other hors d'oevres of your choice.
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A biomedical engineer/ neuroscientist by training, currently a mommy blogger on a quest for all things food - Indian Palate, Global perspective!

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