Fabulous chef demo by David and Sariann of The Broken Tulip! They made Imam Bayildi....great way to use fresh eggplant, tomatoes, onions, garlic, green chilies, and herbs. A feast for your palate and eyes.
Fabulous chef demo by David and Sariann of The Broken Tulip! They made Imam Bayildi....great way to use fresh eggplant, tomatoes, onions, garlic, green chilies, and herbs. A feast for your palate and eyes.
Tomato sauce - Peel the tomatoes by cutting a small cross in the blossom end and submerging in a large pot of boiling water for 10 seconds. Do this in batches of about 5-6 tomatoes at once, lifting them out with a slotted spoon. Make sure the water comes back to a rolling boil between each batch. Use a paring knife to slip off the skins and cut out the green cores.
Take 1/2 the garlic cloves and smack them smartly with the side of a knife, just to break them. Heat 1/4 of the oil with the garlic in a large saucepan (big enough to hold all the tomatoes); when the garlic is lightly golden brown remove from the oil and add the tomatoes, crushing each one in your hands to burst them. Bring them to a boil, then turn the heat down to a brisk simmer and cook down to a sauce for and hour or so, stirring frequently. When it is the consistency of a nice light sauce add salt to taste and a little pinch of sugar.
Spice mix - toast the cumin, coriander and caraway together in dry pan just until they smell fragrant. Crush the spices in a mortar and pestle until coarse.
Heat oven to 450 with a large sheet pan inside. Toss the eggplant in a bowl with half the remaining olive oil and a good dose of salt. Once the sheet tray is roasting hot carefully remove from the oven and spread the oil-coated eggplant on the tray. Immediately return the tray to the oven and roast until the eggplant is tender and browned, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile heat the remaining oil in a large saucepan and add the onions with some salt, cook over a medium heat until golden, about 20 minutes.
While the eggplant is roasting and the onions are browning, finely slice the remaining garlic and the chillies. Add these to the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add the spice mix, turmeric, paprika and cinnamon and cook, stirring for a further couple of minutes. When the onion mix starts to stick to the pan add a good slug of your fresh tomato sauce and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any brown bits. Add the eggplant to the spicy sauce and stir well to combine. Cook at a gentle simmer for 15 minutes or so. Remove from heat and let cool slightly before serving.
Serve warm or at room temperature with cous cous, rice or flatbread and a crisp green salad.
