Yotam Ottolenghi and Ixta Belfrage’s stuffed eggplant in curry and coconut dal

Both the eggplant slices and the lentil sauce in this dish can be prepared the day before.

Stuffed eggplant in curry and coconut dal. Picture: Jonathan Lovekin

You can make this whole dish a day ahead. Chill in the fridge and bring to room temperature before warming up. The coconut dal is a great recipe in its own right. Double it, if you like, and save some for another meal.

Stuffed eggplant in curry and coconut dal

3 large eggplants, stalks removed, cut lengthways into 6 x ½cm-thick slices (750g)

3 tablespoons olive oil

220g paneer (or extra-firm tofu), roughly grated

2 limes: finely grate the zest to get 1 teaspoon, then juice to get 2 tablespoons

45g hot mango pickle, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve

5g coriander, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve

100g large (not baby) spinach leaves, stems removed (60g)

Salt and black pepper

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Coconut Dal

3 tablespoons olive oil

5 banana (French) shallots, peeled and finely chopped (250g)

45g fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped

2 red chillies, finely chopped

30 fresh curry leaves

1 teaspoon black mustard seeds

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

2 teaspoons medium curry powder

2 teaspoons tomato paste

100g dried red lentils

1 x 400ml can coconut milk (at least 70% coconut extract)

Heat oven to 220°C fan. In a large bowl, toss eggplant with the oil, ¾ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper. Spread out on two parchment-lined baking trays and bake for 25 minutes, flipping halfway, until softened and lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

For the coconut dal, put 2 tablespoons of oil into a large sauté pan on a medium-high heat. Once hot, add shallots; fry for 8 minutes, until golden. Add the ginger, half the chilli and half the curry leaves (if using), cook for 2 minutes, then add the spices, tomato paste and lentils.

Stir for a minute, then add coconut milk, 600ml of water and ¾ teaspoon of salt. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to medium and leave to simmer for 20 minutes, stirring once in a while, until the lentils are soft and the sauce is thick. Pour into a medium baking dish, about 28cm x 18cm, if making the eggplant rolls, and set aside.

In a small bowl, toss together the paneer, lime zest, mango pickle, 1 tablespoon of lime juice, the coriander and ¹⁄8 teaspoon of salt.

Place one spinach leaf on top of each slice of eggplant. Put a heaped teaspoon of paneer mixture in the middle, then roll up eggplant from the thinner end at the top down to the thicker bottom end, so the filling is encased. Put eggplant roll seam side down in the lentil sauce, and repeat with the remaining eggplant slices, spinach and paneer. You should end up with about 18 rolls. Press rolls gently into the sauce, but not so far that they are submerged; bake for 15-20 minutes until eggplant is golden-brown on top and sauce is bubbling. Remove from oven and leave to rest for 5 minutes.

Heat remaining tablespoon of oil in a small pan on medium-high heat. Add remaining chilli and curry leaves; fry for a minute, until the leaves are crisp and fragrant. Spoon over eggplant rolls, drizzle over lime juice and serve with coriander sprinkled on top. Serves 4 as a main

From Ottolenghi Flavour by Yotam Ottolenghi & Ixta Belfrage (Ebury Press, $55). Photography: Jonathan Lovekin.