[Zana]

Armenian Eggplant Appetiser – Imam Bayeldi

“Imam Bayeldi” is a Turkish phrase meaning “the priest fainted”. Legend has it that in an Armenian village many years ago (then under Turkish rule) a priest fainted from sheer delight on first tasting this sumptious dish. Here are two versions of this appetizer.

Version 1

INGREDIENTS
2 large eggplants, about one pound each
½ cup olive oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced (I have been known to double that!)
½ green pepper, cut in strips
½ sweet red pepper, cut in strips
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 cans of tomatoes, crushed or 8 large tomatoes, diced
¼ cup tomato juice
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red cayenne pepper
1 cup water

DIRECTIONS
Wash eggplant, discard stem. Cut eggplant in half-inch rounds. Brush both sides of slices with olive oil, then, under preheated oven, broil 5-10 minutes on each side until lightly browned (or you could grill it until lightly browned).

Saute the onions in remaining olive oil until limp, about ten minutes, then add remaining ingredients and cook gently, uncovered, for five minutes. Stir occasionally.

Cover bottom of an 8-inch square pan with two or three spoonfuls of the sauce, layer half the eggplant slices over this, and spoon half the sauce and top with rest of sauce. Place sheet of aluminum foil over pan, tucking in sides.

Bake in preheated 350 degrees F oven for one hour, removing foil last ten minutes. Cool before serving.

Yield: 6 servings

Version 2

INGREDIENTS
6 baby eggplants
salt
½ cup olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
4 cloves garlic, sliced thin (again, I up the garlic here)
¼ cup red and green pepper, sliced thin
1 tomato, chopped
¼ cup minced parsley
1 teaspoon salt
a dash of cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon paprika
2 cans of tomatoes, crushed or 8 large tomatoes, diced
14 cup tomato juice
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 cup water
lemon wedges

DIRECTIONS
• Wash and stem eggplants. Peel off skin in three vertical lines about one inch apart to give a striped effect. Make a slit lengthwise without cutting through the eggplant. Salt eggplants generously and let drain in colander a half hour. Then rinse and pat dry.

• Heat olive oil in large skillet and brown the eggplants on all sides. Remove and set aside.

• Add the onions, garlic, pepper, tomato, parsley and seasonings to the skillet and sauté for ten minutes until onions are soft, stirring occasionally.

• Cool slightly then stuff the eggplant slits with this filling, pressing a few spoonfuls into each one. Place the eggplants in a pan with the slits facing up.

• Combine the canned / diced tomatoes, juice, paste and water until well blended and carefully pour over the eggplants.

• Cover and simmer gently for almost an hour over a medium flame or until eggplants are soft. If liquid evaporates too quickly, add more hot water to the pan. Cool, then serve with lemon wedges.

Yield: 6 servings

Zana’s Notes:
• I have been known to added minced hot peppers to the “stuffing” mixture, sometimes grilling them or smoking them first.
• I have also been known to add juliennes of carrots and celery to the layers in the first version, or to the “stuffing” mixture in the second version.
• You can add or decrease the amount of garlic to taste. I prefer more than what the recipe calls for, so I add more.
• I have also added minced/ground lamb or finely chopped fish, small shrimp, thin calamari rings, small scallops to the “stuffing” mixture or mixed with the tomatoes layer. Then this becomes more of a meat /seafood main dish.
• If you want this as a main dish, you can either increase the amounts, or use large eggplants for stuffing.
• I have frozen the stuffed eggplants before cooking. Reduce the cooking time to compensate for the softer texture of the eggplant after thawing.

Source: Armenian Cooking Today by Alice Antreassian