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Sweet-and-Sour Eggplant Salad

Broken pieces of toasted pita bread are sometimes placed at the bottom of the serving dish to become well moistened and soggy with the dressing.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    serves 6

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds eggplants, cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or a 14-ounce can peeled tomatoes
4 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 tablespoon dried mint
3 tablespoons wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Pepper or a good pinch ground chili pepper to taste

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Sprinkle the eggplant cubes with salt and leave in a colander for about 1/2 hour for the juices to drain away. Then rinse and dry.

    Step 2

    Cover the bottom of a heavy pan with olive oil. Fry the onion in this until it is soft and golden. Add the eggplants, and stir, turning them over, for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir, until it begins to color. Add the tomatoes, with their juice, the parsley, mint, vinegar, sugar, and pepper or ground chili pepper. Cook over very low heat for about 20 minutes, or until the eggplants are soft. Serve cold.

  2. Variations

    Step 3

    For a Syrian flavor, instead of the vinegar add 2–3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses or concentrate and 5 or 6 cloves garlic left whole.

    Step 4

    Add 1 pound canned chickpeas (drained).

Cover of Claudia Roden's The New Book of Middle Easter Food, featuring a blue filigree bowl filled with Meyer lemons and sprigs of mint.
Reprinted with permission from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food, copyright © 2000 by Claudia Roden, published by Knopf. Buy the full book on Amazon or Bookshop.
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