Vegan Eggplant Tikka Masala

Fenugreek is to Indian cuisine as basil is to Italian cuisine. This spice smells and tastes like a Bollywood wedding between celery and licorice. In fact, it’s so intensely fragrant and bittersweet that I have a hard time wrapping my Midwestern palate around any dish made with it. Since Indian restaurants offer far more vegetarian options than traditional American eateries, my dining prospects would improve exponentially if I appreciated this workhorse Indian spice. So I decided to cook through my fenugreek issues and vegetize a quintessential Indian dish: chicken tikka masala.

Tikka is Hindi for “cutlet” or “pieces,” in this case, of hearty, roast chicken. I ran through my mental list of chicken substitutes: Nutritious beans are my meatless fallback because it’s so easy to toss a can into a salad, stew or your purse; yet they look like legumes, not tikka. For authenticity’s sake, I wanted the dish to contain something nugget-y. Enter eggplant. When roasted with the skin on, it holds its shape, the texture is less onerous to mush-sensitive tongues and roasting coaxes a lovely sweet flavor from this otherwise neutral-tasting veggie.

While the eggplant roasted, I started the tomato sauce, or curry. You might only know curry as a jar in your spice rack, but the same word also describes an Indian stew or gravy. Since I was already roasting the eggplant, I added a pan of Roma tomatoes to the hot oven. This set me up for one-step cooking ... and disappointment. The thick-skinned Romas withstood the high heat, but didn’t release enough liquid to make a curry. Big juicy beefsteak tomatoes did the opposite, dissolving into a tasteless puddle.

I consulted an expert, PJ Singh, owner of Taj Palace in Chesterfield, and realized I was trying too hard. Singh uses cans of whole tomatoes and their juices in his curry for chicken tikka masala. Canned tomatoes are packed with flavor, a perfect texture and a pantry staple that’s always there when you need it, like a happy Bollywood dance number. Singh adds a pinch of sugar to neutralize the acidity and finishes with cilantro, green onions and a generous helping of 40-percent whipping cream. I achieved the same smooth, velvety texture with a bit of coconut cream, the rich, thick yumminess that floats to the top of a can of coconut milk.

Indian curries are deeply flavorful, tasting smoky, sweet, fresh and rich, seemingly at the same time. It takes a blend of spices, called masala, to hit all of these notes. That’s why, if a recipe calls for garam masala and you’re out of it, you can whip up your own with the spices already in your pantry. Singh uses cinnamon, cumin, coriander, ginger, garlic and chile powder to flavor his curry. I did the same, substituting a whole Serrano chile for the powder and adding cloves to round out the sweetness.

My vegan tikka masala was everything I wanted in a weeknight meal – easy, appetizing and healthy, but I had to admit, it didn’t taste wholly like Indian food. Imagine a plain sari with no ornamentation – my recipe was missing the opportunity to be boldly authentic. What it needed, of course, was fenugreek. That spice, with its tones of burnt maple syrup, no longer seemed overwhelming. Instead, it was the only seasoning that could take the recipe from expected to exciting.

This recipe is easily customized. Use eggplant, beans or yes, chicken, if that’s your preference. Love cumin? Double it. Not ready to wrestle with a strong flavor like fenugreek? Start with a pinch and work your way up to its fullest flavor. The only real mistake you can make is to not make this flavor-packed dish at all.

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Vegan Eggplant Tikka Masala

4 servings

1 small (1 lb.) eggplant, stem removed and cut into 1-inch cubes
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
½ tsp. kosher salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 28-oz. can whole tomatoes
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. grated peeled ginger
1 Serrano chile pepper, seeds removed, minced
¼ cup tomato paste
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground cloves
¼ tsp. ground fenugreek*
2 tsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
¼ to ½ cup coconut cream, such as Trader’s Joe’s Coconut Cream**
2 cups prepared basmati rice
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
¼ cup chopped green onion

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Place the cubed eggplant in a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons oil and the salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Spread the eggplant cubes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes, then toss the cubes and roast another 10 to 15 minutes, until the eggplant is golden and tender. Set aside.
• Pour the tomatoes and their juices into a large nonreactive bowl. Using your hands, squeeze the tomatoes to break them up. Set aside.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the onion until it begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and Serrano pepper, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste, stirring to coat the onion mixture. Add the coriander, cumin, cinnamon, cloves and fenugreek. Stir often, until the tomato paste begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, stirring to combine. Add the sugar and the eggplant and stir again. Reduce the heat to simmer. Cook until the sauce thickens, about 3 minutes. Add the lemon juice and ¼ cup coconut cream, and simmer 1 minute.
• Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding more coconut cream if desired. Serve hot over the basmati rice. Garnish with the cilantro and green onion.

* Available at Penzeys Spices, 7338 Manchester Road, Maplewood, 314.781.7177; 246 THF Boulevard, Chesterfield, 636.778.1129, penzeys.com
** Available at Trader Joe’s, 48 Brentwood Promenade Court, Brentwood, 314.963.0253, traderjoes.com