Aubergine & Toasted Coconut Curry

This celebratory Malaysian dish is notable for its quantity of fragrant spices: cumin, coriander, turmeric and ginger provide supporting base notes, on top of which sweetly sing the sopranos: cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, fennel and star anise. The recipe starts with making a coconut paste called kerisik, toasted buff brown to bring a nutty, caramelised richness. I like the silky savouriness of aubergine, a gentle foil for the strident spicing, but wedges of pineapple could be used in its pla