Begun Paturi is a dish from Bengali cuisine, inspired by a popular Macher Paturi. Eggplants are boiled after being basted in a flavorful mustard paste and then steamed after being wrapped in a banana leaf.
If you love simple, soulful food packed with flavors that not only nourish you, but taste great, then today’s recipe is perfect for you.
I fell in love with some Bengali dishes when my husband was posted in Shillong long ago. My Bengali help introduced me to a number of delicacies that later became regular items on our menus.
But because I’m a vegetarian, she had to adapt certain popular recipes to suit my dietary choices. This is one such dish, inspired by Macher Paturi. She made it with baingan or Begun and once she tried it with Paneer.
I didn’t like the paneer version, but this eggplant stuck with me. The eggplant stuffed and smeared with masala paste wrapped in banana leaves, steamed and served with gobindobhog rice. So give this recipe a try. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.
Jump to:
Why would you make it?
- It is a very simple, nutritious and very tasty eggplant recipe that you can prepare in just a few minutes.
- It’s gluten-free, naturally vegan and easy to make.
- It is a delicious meal on its own and a great side dish to serve with dal and rice.
- Steaming it in banana leaves gives it a unique flavor that is very tasty.
Ingredients
- Eggplant: Long large eggplants (cut lengthwise into 4 pieces)
- Spices: Mustard seeds, poppy seeds, turmeric powder
- Fresh coconut, grated
- Green peppers, split
- Salt to taste
- Banana leaf, cut into 10*8 rectangles for packing
- Mustard oil
What to serve with it
I usually serve it with steamed rice and whole masoor dal.
Recipe Notes: Tips to Make It Right
- Let the flavors marinate after applying the paste to the eggplant slices. It helps in properly absorbing the herbal flavors.
- You can also add steamed rice while wrapping the eggplant in banana leaves; that tastes even better.
- Always make slits in the eggplant for maximum flavor absorption.
More such recipes
- Eggplant sandwich recipe
- Alu Baingan Recipe
- Methi Baingan Sabji
- Chinese eggplant tofu recipe
- Bengali Dim Kosha Recipe
📖 Recipe
Started Paturi: Eggplant in banana leaf
This eggplant dish is inspired by Bengali cuisine. It’s healthy, delicious and if you like simple, soulful food that’s packed with flavors that not only nourish you but taste amazing, then this started Paturi recipe is perfect for you.
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant cut lengthwise into 4 pieces
- 1 tablespoons Mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon Poppy seeds
- 2 tablespoons Fresh coconut grated
- 5 Green peppers crack
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 Banana leaf cut into 10*8 rectangles
- 1 teaspoons Mustard oil
Instructions
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In a mortar and pestle or mixer, make a coarse paste of mustard seeds, poppy seeds and green chillies by adding a little water. grated coconut, salt to taste. Add turmeric powder and mustard oil.
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Take a thick slice of baingan/eggplant.
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Make cross slits to fill this masala paste.
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Fill the masala nicely in the holes and now wrap it in banana leaf. Make a tight package using a thread
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Now take a non-stick pan and boil the parcels on it or steam them like I do. In either case, close the pan with a heavy lid and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes.
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After this, remove them from the pan, remove the string, open the packet, sprinkle with some red chilli-lemon juice and enjoy with fragrant gobindobhog rice and masur dal. Dig right in and ENJOY! DISCLAIMER: This may be authentic or not authentic.
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