Imam Bayildi: Olive Oil Eggplants Stuffed with Onion, Tomato and Parsley

What you need

• 4 small eggplants, 250-300 g (9-10 oz) each
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) olive oil
• 500 g (1 lb) onions, thinly sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 500 g (1 lb) ripe tomatoes, diced
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp salt, plus a little for the eggplants
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 20 g (3/4 oz) parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 150 ml (2/3 cup) water

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Peel the eggplants in lengthwise stripes, leaving alternate strips of skin.

2. 2

   Heat half the olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Fry the eggplants, turning, until golden and starting to soften but still holding their shape, 8-10 min. Move them to a plate.

3. 3

   Heat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F).

4. 4

   Add the remaining olive oil to the pan. Cook the onions over medium heat until soft and translucent, without browning, about 10 min.

5. 5

   Add the garlic and fry it for 1 min, stirring.

6. 6

   Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper and sugar. Cook until the mixture thickens, 8-10 min. Stir in most of the parsley and take off the heat.

7. 7

   Cut a lengthwise slit in each eggplant, leaving 2 cm (3/4 in) uncut at both ends and not cutting through the bottom. Sprinkle a little salt inside.

8. 8

   Set the eggplants slit side up in a snug baking dish and fill each with the onion mixture.

9. 9

   Whisk the tomato paste and lemon juice into the water and pour it around the eggplants.

10. 10

    Cover tightly with foil and bake for 50 min.

11. 11

    Remove the foil and bake until the eggplants are completely soft, about 20 min. Add a splash of water if the sauce dries out.

12. 12

    Cool to room temperature, spoon the pan juices over the top and sprinkle with the remaining parsley.

Imported from cookingorgeous.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.