Vaal Ringan nu Shaak | Field Beans & Aubergine Curry

I have always enjoyed this curry but I never knew how to make it...until recently. My sister-in-law, Purnima, was kind enough to give me her recipe, telling me it's her favourite curry. Well...now, it's my favourite curry too! It's so tasty, slightly sweet & sour with enough texture yet soft and saucy.

So let me share with you how to make this delicious, Gujarati curry so you can share in the joy too! Enjoy!

Vaal Ringan nu Shaak Cooking Time 90 Minutes (Approx)

Soak Beans Overnight

Serves 3-4

INGREDIENTS:

· 1 Cup / 200g Dry Vaal or Field Beans

· 1 Medium Sized Aubergine

· ¼ Cup Vegetable Oil

· ¼ tspn Mustard Seeds

· ¼ tspn Ajwain / Ajmo Seeds

· 1/2 tspn Hing / Asafoetida

· 1 Tbspn Chopped Coriander

· 200g Crushed Plum Tomatoes ( 1/2 a 400g Tin)

· 2 tspn Ginger-Garlic-Chilli Paste

· ½ tspn Red Chilli Powder (Cayenne)

· 2 tspn Coriander-Cumin Powder

· ¼ tspn Turmeric

· 1 tspn Salt

· 1 tspn Brown Sugar or Gor

· 1 Tbspn Tomato Ketchup

METHOD:

Soak vaal overnight in a large bowl using room temperature water. The nears will expand in size, so make sure you have a large bowl and plenty of water.

Note: If you have forgotten to soak the vaal overnight, you can soak them for 2-3 hours in warm water, changing the water frequently to keep it warm. Then, before you boil the vaal, go through and remove any beans that haven't soaked completely. They will make a sharp sound when dropped on a plate compared to a dull sound of the fully soaked beans.

Boil vaal in a pressure cooker for 20 minutes with water level ½-1” above the vaal. Once cooked, let the pressure release naturally. Or for 25 minutes on High Pressure in the Instant Pot.

Check that the vaal is completely cooked by pressing it between your fingers. If it is still tough, pressure cook it for 5-10 minutes more. You want it to be nice & mushy. Slightly overcooked is better than undercooked here!

Drain the cooked vaal, reserving the liquid (broth) to add to the curry as needed.

In another pan, heat the oil.

Add the mustard seeds and wait for them to start popping.

Then add the ajwain seeds (ajmo) and the Asafoetida (hing).

Add the chopped coriander, pureed plum tomato tin, ginger-garlic-chili paste, turmeric, red chili powder, coriander-cumin powder and salt. Stir and cook for a for a few minutes.

Then add cut aubergine and fry for a few minutes. You want to coat the aubergine pieces in the spicy sauce.

Then add the cooked vaal (without the water) to the aubergine mixture.. Mix and let this cook.

Add the vaal water (broth) if needed. The curry should have some sauce. Continue to cook the curry until the aubergine is completely soft, about 50 minutes.

Then when the aubergine is cooked, add the sugar or gor and a Tbspn of ketchup.

Garnish with coriander.

Enjoy with hot Roti or Puri.

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