Brinjal Bhaji, otherwise known as Aubergine Bhaji, is a staple in Indian restaurants all over the UK. And now this vegan recipe takes any Indian ‘fakeaway’ to the next level!
If you come back to this recipe often, we've made a couple of updates to the recipe. But don't worry, it's just as delicious. The biggest change is that we bake the aubergines on a slightly higher temperature so that they're even softer than they were before. The rest is pretty much the same!
Brinjal bhaji is actually one of our favourite dishes to order at our local Indian takeaway. The combination of the creamy, roasted aubergines and classic Indian spices is a satisfying one!
The dish is filled with chunks of aubergine that’s been baked with aromatic Indian spices, topped with fresh coriander and chilli.
Aubergine bhaji is actually also 'accidentally vegan'. You'll probably find that your local restaurant's version of this is completely plant-based too. Make sure to check if they use a dairy ghee to cook it though. It actually isn’t typical but it's always best to check!
Another name for this meal – or side dish, is begun bhaji, so keep an eye out for all three of those names when you're ordering!
How to make brinjal bhaji
These are the ingredients that you’ll need for this brinjal bhaji:
2 large aubergines (around 600g)
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
2 tbsp tomato puree
Water
To get the incredible flavour, you just need four spices:
Cumin
Coriander
Garam Masala
Chilli Powder
Step-by-step instructions
As per usual, we’ve included the full instructions in the recipe card below, but here’s a brief overview of how to make this aubergine bhaji.
Start off by baking the aubergines for 30 minutes on gas mark 6. That might seem like a high temperature but it really does take that long to get them to the right consistency. It means they’ll be nice and soft and creamy on the inside, and the skin will be just a little crisp on the outside (but not too much!).
Brush the skin with a little bit of oil, but there’s no need for a lot of oil. Aubergines act like sponges when it comes to oil, so less is more in this case.
Pro tip: a lot of people will be used to salting aubergines before cooking them. This really is not necessary. We have it on good authority from our chef friend (hey Erin!) that salting eggplant before cooking is not needed. So we don’t do it, and we’ve never noticed the difference.
Once the aubergine is ready, let it cool and then chop it into bite size chunks. You can remove the skin if you like, but we never do. There’s often a lot of nutrients in the skin so keep them intact if you don’t mind them!
The next part of the cooking process will be on the stove top. Pop another small splash of oil in a pan and start frying off the onions, then add the garlic. Then add all the spices and the tomato puree.
Once all combined add the chopped aubergines into the pan, add around 6 tablespoons of water then cover. Simmer for around 10-15 minutes. The aubergine will be super soft and tasty by this point. Season with salt to taste.
Uncover when ready to serve, and top with fresh coriander. It’s as easy as that!
Difference between brinjal bhaji and onion bhaji
Brinjal bhaji (or aubergine bhaji!) is not to be mistaken for the fried, crispy onion bhajis that we all know and love. As with a lot of Asian or Indian food, it can be subject to change when it crosses borders or even different areas within its country of origin.
‘Bhaji’ actually means a simple vegetable curry, as a pan Indian term. However, chopped onion coated in batter and deep fried, is also a bhaji. And it’s probably more commonly known too, at least in the UK anyway. Onion bhaji is also a very well known and loved dish from street food sellers in certain areas of India.
Maybe it was down to a spelling error, as it certainly seems that bhaji means a dry curry in most instances, and the onion bhaji has a lot more in common with a pakora than a dry curry.
So, there you have it: aubergine bhaji and onion bhaji are two completely different dishes!
Our brinjal bhaji is a much healthier dish anyway. More comparable to an aubergine curry, it involves twice cooked aubergines – first roasted, then sautéed with spices and tomatoes.
Is aubergine bhaji good for you?
Aubergines are very good for you. According to BBC Good Food aubergines contain:
Dietary fibre
Vitamins B1
Vitamin B6
Potassium
Antioxidants
Copper
Magnesium
Manganese
The antioxidant nasunin is found in aubergine skin too. So, as long as you don’t use too much oil, not only is this brinjal bhaji super tasty, but it’s good for you too! FYI, we're not nutritionists but we do take a keen interest in what's healthy and what isn't. We do like an unhealthy treat now and again though!
Equipment needed to make this dish:
Oven Roasting Pan – make sure the oven dish is big enough for all four halves of the aubergine. Be sure to cover the bottom of the tray with greaseproof paper to prevent the aubergines from sticking.
Large Pan with a Lid – you’ll need a large pan with a lid. This Scoville 3 Piece Saucepan Set is excellent value for money. It includes a 16cm, 18cm and 20cm saucepan, all with lids. The bhaji is cooked with the lid on so that the little bit of water that’s added doesn’t completely evaporate. The reason for this is that it is a dry-ish dish, but it shouldn’t be bone-dry. That wouldn’t be enjoyable to eat!
Balti Dishes – so, you don’t technically need these. However, we love our balti dishes so we wanted to give them a special mention. As featured in our photographs! If you have friends over or you’re just trying to recreate the feeling of being in an Indian restaurant, they make curry night extra special.
If you love this recipe, you make also like to try:
There’s nothing much else left to say but, we hope you enjoy the recipe! If you love this recipe, please do leave a review (at the bottom of the page). Reviews help bloggers more than anything, so we’d really appreciate your feedback if you have a few moments to spare!
Don’t forget to save this recipe for later by pinning it on Pinterest too...
Aubergine Bhaji
Ingredients
- 2 aubergines ~600g - chopped in half lengthways
- 1 onion - finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 6 tbsp water
- Handful of fresh coriander - roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6/200c.
- Cut the aubergines in half, brush oil on the skins. Lay with the flesh side down in an oven roasting tray.2 aubergines
- Roast them in the oven for 30 minutes, until the insides soften.
- Remove the aubergines from the oven and, once they're cool enough to handle, chop them into rough chunks – about 1 inch in size.
- Heat a splash of oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat, then add the onion until it starts to soften and turn translucent.2 tbsp vegetable oil, 1 onion
- Add the garlic, spices and tomato purée and cook for a couple of minutes until fragrant.2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander, ½ tsp chilli powder, 2 tbsp tomato purée
- Stir in the roasted aubergine and water, stir well, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 10-15 minutes with the lid on, stirring occasionally.6 tbsp water
- Season to taste and stir in the coriander.
- Serve up with naan bread or chapatis alongside your favourite curry!Handful of fresh coriander
Julia
Fabulous recipe, thanks so much! I’ve added it to my regular rotation to be repeated!
I especially love the way the recipe is presented, repeating the ingredients at each stage of the method. This is so helpful as it means I don’t have to keep looking back to see how much of each ingredient needs to be added.
Thanks again and I look forward to trying some of your other recipes!
Sarah
I’ve made this a couple of times now, it’s delicious and so simple!
I’ve added a tin of chopped tomatoes to bulk it up and frozen into portions so that we can take to work for lunches.
Jess & Dan
So glad to hear this Sarah! Especially love that you take it to work for lunches, and the tip about adding tomatoes. We'll have to try it like that too! Jess 😊
Tim B
I'm not normally vegan but I was looking for something simple and tasty to cook last night and this really hit the spot. I had some fresh tomatoes that really needed using so I baked them with the aubergine and stirred the whole lot in instead of the tomato puree. Result looked a bit funny but the taste was great. Thanks for the recipe.
Prema Almeida
Although the spellings for 'bhaji' in Brinjal bhaji and onion bhaji are the same, the pronunciations are different. The 'bhaji' in brinjal is a broad term for a dry vegetable dish, whereas the 'bhaji' in onion bhaji (pronounced with a stress on 'j' ) is any vegetable dipped in batter (mostly chickpea flour) and deep fried. Onion bhaji is also known as onion pakoras.
Matt
We had this as a side dish to another curry, the flavours are very authentic and similar to Brinjal Bhaji that I have had previously. It is a very clear recipe, easy to follow and a fantastic result. Definitely one to make again.
Jess Saunders
Hey Matt, it's so good to hear that you loved this recipe! Hope you continue to enjoy it over and over again. Jess 😊
Andrea
What is a "gas mark 6"?
Jess Saunders
Hi Andrea, it's 200°C or 400°F. We have 'gas mark' on our ovens here in the UK, we're updating all of our recipes so that they're in °F and °C too though! Jess 😊
Daemon Caliban
Just convert C to F. 200c = approx 400F.
Justine
Amazing recipe thank you! Now looking forward to exploring many more but this one was a wow after trying many other brinjal bhaji’s thank u
Jess Saunders
So glad to hear this Justine, thanks so much for your fantastic review! Jess x
Jeedle
Your Aubergine Bhaji is to die for. I followed your recipe to the letter to warm up for dinner tonight, with only the coriander to add. Having said that, after tasting it a couple or so times I had to drag myself away from it otherwise I would need to make another batch to go round. Well done you two - 12 out of 10!!
Jess Saunders
Hi Jeedle, this review has made my day! I'm so glad to read you enjoyed the bhaji, this is the highest praise ever. Thank you! 💚 Jess x
Ann BRANDISH
I had made your mushroom bharji and loved it as a side with curry meal and had one small aubergine in the fridge so made a half version of this. Very good and loved the spices. Thanks from an omnivore..
Jess Saunders
That sounds amazing! So glad you enjoyed them both. Bhajis are delish! 😍 Jess x
Julie
Brilliant recipe cooked it tonight we really enjoyed it
Jess Saunders
We're so glad you enjoyed it Julie! Thank you for leaving this review 😊 Jess x
Robert Matthews
Good morning, Vegan Punks,
I have tried your brinjal bhaji recipe and it was a stunning success. I admit I did take one short cut - the tomato puree I used had garlic in it, saving me the effort of chopping up those cloves. I cooked it as a side dish along with yellow daal (to a recipe given to me by the ex-landlord of the pub in my street) and aloo channa (my own recipe, but not exactly complicate). My friend, who shared the food with me, was delighted. She had specifically asked for an aubergine dish, and I hadn't cooked an aubergine for decades, having been put off them by not knowing how to cook them. I will definitely be doing this dish again.
Dan - the story of your journey to veganism is rather similar to mine. I became vegetarian as a teenager, in the late 1970s (at the height of punk, I would note). Prior to that, if you had offered me a pill to take that meant I didn't need to ever eat, I would have taken it. Vegetarianism made food interesting and enjoyable to prepare and share. Those were different days and my attempt to become a vegan was an epic fail. Now I am trying again.
Thank you for your very useful website.
Best wishes,
Robert
Dan Saunders
Hey Robert!
Thanks so much for the lovely comment. I don't blame you on the shortcut – my dad is also a big fan of using garlic purée...if nothing else it saves you from having garlic-y fingers for the rest of the day! Really glad you and your friend liked this recipe.
I love that so many people share a similar story on having their eyes opened to the wonders of food after cutting out meat or dairy. I think it sparks a bit of creativity in a lot of people during that beginning phase where they maybe think they're missing out on something, but then realise that they'd probably been missing out up until this point!
It's certainly a lot easier to be vegan now than it ever has been. It feels like a new product is coming out every week! Glad you're giving the journey another go. If you ever have any questions or need any inspiration, drop us a message on Instagram – we're super responsive over there and share a lot of recipes and other cooking stuff on our stories 🙂 We're always on the other end of a comment on here or an email, if you're not an Instagram person though!
Take care! Dan
Janice Cade
I made this yesterday and it was lovely! So nice to find a brinjal recipe that isn't swimming in oil. An excellent way to cook aubergine. Thank you!
Jess Saunders
So glad you enjoyed this Janice, and thank you so much for the lovely review! We didn't want it to have lots of oil included as it can be a bit too greasy! Jess x
Daisy
OMG SO GOOD! I only had 1 aubergine so chucked in a courgette too and it was delicious 🙂
Samantha Feltham
Can you freeze this do you know?
Vegan Punks
Yes, it freezes well! Hope you like it. We'll add a note to the recipe to say that it can be frozen too! Thanks for asking. Jess x
Kevin
Devine!
Heidi
Absolutely delicious recipe. Very easy to make and satisfying. I passed it to my coworkers and they will try it too. Top favorite!
Thank you so much! Keep up the good work!
Vegan Punks
Thanks so much for this wonderful review Heidi! It's great to hear you passed the recipe to co-workers too, I hope they like it too! We will keep it up 😊 Jess x