Prakash K. Sivanathan, Niranjala M. Ellawala

2. Wambatu Pahi

Name: Wambatu Pahi
Cuisine: Sri Lankan
Ingredients: 300 g (10½ oz) aubergine (eggplant) (about 1 medium); 300 g (10½ oz) aubergine (eggplant) (about 1 medium); 1 tsp salt; ½ tsp ground turmeric; 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1.5 cm (½-inch) piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped; ½ medium onion, sliced; 1 tbsp Maldive fish, crushed; 500 ml (17 fl oz/generous 2 cups) oil, for deep frying, plus 1 tbsp for frying; 5 cm (2-inch) piece of rampe (pandan) leaf; 4 fresh curry leaves; 2 green chillies, slit lengthways with seeds in; ¼ tsp fennel powder; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; ½ tsp ground cinnamon; 1 tsp sugar (white or brown); 1 tsp ground mustard seeds; 100 ml (3½ fl oz/7 tbsp) tamarind water (thin concentrate); 1 tsp chilli powder; 100 ml (3½ fl oz/7 tbsp) coconut cream; 1 tsp sugar (white or brown); 1 tsp sugar (white or brown)

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Sri Lanka

By Prakash K. Sivanathan and Niranjala M. Ellawala

Published 2017

About

Ingredients

300 g (10½ oz) aubergine (eggplant) (about 1 medium)
1 tsp

Asia
Sri Lanka
Side dish
Fish course
Gluten-free
Pescatarian

Method

Pickled aubergine

Wash the aubergine (eggplant) and cut it into 1cm (½-inch) chunks. Put it in a medium bowl, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of the salt and the turmeric and set aside for 5 minutes.

Bring the 500 ml of oil to boiling point in a deep saucepan, then reduce the heat to med