Ever since I was a kid, I've been a sucker for flamboyant table gestures. You know what I'm talking about. The Caesar salad made at the table, the flaming Cherries Jubilee, the blazing Baked Alaska, all those guys at Benihana flinging sharp knives around. Drama! So it was the gesture I was looking for last night. Paula Wolfert was coming to dinner at our house and I decided to go for the drama with an Eggplant Bharat. This is a dish I've made for years. I'd first read about it in an early book by Madhur Jaffrey. It is a form of raita where an eggplant is smoked and charred then peeled. After the eggplant is mashed, yogurt and spices are added, and then the piece de resistance, it's smoked again with live coals right at the table! Very dramatic. I couldn't wait to show Paula. Turns out she'd never heard of this technique before and was very eager to see it done. Drumroll please! Well wouldn't you know it, after talking about this and cooking it for many people over the years, my coal wouldn't ignite properly. There I was with Paula, her son and my husband all crowded around my clay pot and fizzle......pfft. No sparks, no smoke. Nada, nothing, zero, zip. I felt like that old Warner Brothers Cartoon featuring Michigan J Frog.

"But, but..I've done this before! Really..it works, and there's smoke and and........" "Don't worry about it" Paula said. "Things don't work perfectly all the time every time. Blog about it anyway. Be truthful! You know it works, let people know what can go wrong. It's still delicious." So, in the name of truth, I'll explain how to do this dish, and meanwhile I'll be making it again and experimenting with my coals so that I can show a proper smoky picture, because when this works it really works and people will be righteously impressed.

	beetroot raita (Step by Step with photo) by swati paathak 2 votes Prep 15 min - Cook 5 min
	Okra (lady fingers) with yougurt curry.. by Indian Cooking 1 vote Prep 10 min - Cook 15 min
	Vegetable aviyal kootu by Moms Times 1 vote Prep 15 min - Cook 30 min
	Kerala Style Mabazhapuliserry by vineetha 1 vote Prep 20 min - Cook 15 min
	Smoke Your Yogurt! by kathy gori 2 votes Prep 60 min

All recipes » Vegetables » Yogurt

beetroot raita (Step by Step with photo) by swati paathak

Okra (lady fingers) with yougurt curry.. by Indian Cooking

Vegetable aviyal kootu by Moms Times

Kerala Style Mabazhapuliserry by vineetha

Smoke Your Yogurt! by kathy gori