1. Wash the rice and saok in 1 3/4 of water for 30 minutes.

2. Heat a pan and dry roast grated coconut and dry red chillies. Keep stirring over medium heat until lighly brown. Let it cool and grind along with green chillies and onion. Mix in with ginger-garlic paste, coriander powder, 1 tsp garam masala and turmeric and process again.

3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in large pan and to this transfer the above paste and cook stirring over medium heat until golden brown.

4. Add the egg plants, salt and 1/2 cup coconut milk and cook over high heat for 3-5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and cover the pan and cook until the they are soft. Remove to a bowl.

5. To the same pan add the remaining oil, tomato, mint, coriander leaves and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.

6. Add the rice with the water it was soaking in, along with salt and coconut milk and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook until most the water has been absorbed but the rice is not yet fully cooked.

7. Remove about half the rice to a bowl. Spread the cooked eggplant mixture over the rice that remains in the pan.

8. Cover the eggplant mixture with the reserved rice. Drizzle the lemon juice over the rice, cover the pan and cook over lowest heat.

9. Sprinkle the garam masala over it and transfer to a bowl.

Serve hot with raita.


Note: For baking: Add half the rice to a oven-safe dish, top with the eggplant mixture, then cover with the remaining rice. Drizzle the lemon juice on top, then bake 15-20 minutes.