Smoked eggplant with garlic (Mirza ghasemi)

 

Smoked eggplant with garlic (Mirza ghasemi)

This is a vegetarian dish that is full of flavour and easy to make. Charred eggplants gives a nice smokey flavour to this dish, although you can alternatively, wrap them in tin foils and bake them in the oven in 200 °C for 40-45 minutes and then proceed to the recipe. It can be served as an appetizer or main dish and either way it'll be absolutely delightful.

 

Ingredients (Serves 4) 

2 large eggplants

1 tablespoon garlic powder or 1 tablespoon garlic flakes or 5 garlic cloves

½ tablespoon turmeric

3 ripe tomatoes, diced

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Olive oil for frying

Salt and pepper

Crushed toasted walnuts and mint leaves for garnish

 

Recipe

Pierce the eggplants with forks and char them on open flame like stove top or a grill until the skin blackened and flesh softened. Make sure to rotate them regularly to have all sides charred. Once the eggplants are cooked, peel the skin off and scoop out the flesh by a spoon. 

Peel garlic cloves and thinly slice them. Cook them in a frying pan over medium heat. Make sure you don’t brown them. Once the garlic starts to get darker, add turmeric and tomatoes to the pan and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the extra water evaporates.

Add the mashed eggplants and salt to your garlic and tomato mix. Stir them well and let it cook for about 8 minutes or until it's thickened and excess water is completely gone.

Meanwhile, scramble your eggs in a separate pan.

Add the eggs to your mixture and give it a final stir, so it combines well. You can garnish your dish with walnut or some parsley. Mirza ghasemi can be served with any Middle Eastern bread like lavash or pita as an appetizer or rice.