Iman Bayildi Recipes

IMAM BAYILDI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment and brush with olive oil. Slit the eggplants down the middle, being careful not to cut through the skin. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until the outer skin begins to shrivel. Remove from the oven and transfer, cut side down, to a colander set in the sink. Allow to drain for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat in a large, lidded skillet and add the onions. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are very tender, 5 to 8 minutes, and add the garlic. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds to a minute, until fragrant. Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl. Add the tomatoes, herbs, salt to taste and 1 teaspoon of the sugar and 1 tablespoon of the remaining oil.
• Turn the eggplants over and place in the pan, cut side up. Season with salt. Fill with the onion and tomato mixture. Mix together the remaining olive oil, the remaining sugar, the water and the lemon juice. Drizzle over and around the eggplants. Cover the pan and place over low heat. Cook gently for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, checking the pan for liquid and basting from time to time with the liquid in the pan, and adding water to the pan if it becomes too dry. By the end of cooking the eggplants should be practically flat and the liquid in the pan slightly caramelized. Spoon this juice over the eggplant. Allow to cool in the pan, and serve at room temperature.

ARMENIAN STUFFED EGGPLANT (IMAM BAYILDI)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Cut eggplants in 1/2, then cut each 1/2 into thirds, leaving 12 eggplant spears total. Place on a baking sheet and brush with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Roast in the preheated oven until fork tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• While eggplants are cooking, heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat in a medium to large pan. Add bell pepper, onion, and garlic to the hot pan and cook until onions become tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Remove eggplants from the oven and let cool slightly, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer eggplants to a 9x13-inch baking dish. Slice each spear vertically using a fork and knife, being careful not to cut through skin. Pry each open and fill with 2 to 3 tablespoons of tomato filling. Cover with tomato sauce.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bubbling, about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley.

IMAM BAYILDI (A STUFFED EGGPLANT RECIPE FROM ASIA MINOR)

Steps:

• Saute the onions in a little oil.
• Add the garlic, tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.
• Cook until it comes together as a very thick stew (no liquid). Stir in mint.
• Cut the stem ends from each eggplant and cut eggplants in half lengthwise.
• Make 3 lengthwise slits, almost from end to end, cutting into the flesh about 1 inch deep.
• Heat 1/2 cup olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
• Add the eggplant, cut side down, and fry gently, until dark golden-brown on cut side.
• Turn over and fry on skin side a couple more minutes.
• Remove from oil (most of it will have been absorbed) and place on paper towels to drain for at least 15 minutes before proceeding with recipe (this gets rid of most of the oil- you can omit the frying step to cut calories and save time, but you will NOT have the same flavourful results, and the recipe will not be as authentic).
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Hold each slit apart and spoon the vegetable mixture into each cavity.
• Arrange eggplants in a baking dish just large enough to hold them.
• Sprinkle with sugar, lemon juice, and drizzle with the remaining oil.
• Bake for 40 minutes, or until tender.
• Serve with lots of crusty bread.

IMAM BAYILDI

Steps:

• Peel the aubergines with a vegetable peeler so you get a zebra look like on the image. Halve them lengthwise into two parts. You can use four smaller instead of two large aubergines, but in that case, you prepare them whole. I prefer halved ones because they give me a better visual appearance.
• Sprinkle the aubergines with salt and allow 15 minutes for the salt to draw moisture from them. Be sure to wipe them off with a paper towel. Otherwise, they will be soggy.
• In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and fry the aubergines on both sides. Fry for 4-5 minutes until they start to get brown colour. When done, remove them from the oil and set aside.
• In the second frying pan, we will now prepare the stuffing. Heat a little olive oil and sauté onion, garlic and tomato. Season with salt and pepper and finally add the spices - sugar, cinnamon, parsley and mint.
• Make a notch through the centre of the aubergine and fill it with stuffing.
• Lay the stuffed aubergines in a baking tray. If there is stuffing leftover, put it in the baking tray next to them. Pour over some more olive oil and lemon juice.
• Cover and place in the oven to bake for approx. 40-45 min at 160 degrees.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool and then cover with the liquid left from baking.
• Imam Bayildi is usually served cold and is additionally garnished with chopped fresh parsley. Yoghurt also goes excellent with this dish.

IMAM BAYILDI WITH BBQ LAMB & TZATZIKI

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Halve the aubergines lengthways and score the flesh side deeply, brush with a good layer of olive oil and put on a baking sheet. Roast for 20 mins or until the flesh is soft enough to scoop out.
• Fry the onion in a little oil until soft, add the garlic and cinnamon and fry for 1 min. Once the aubergines are cool enough to handle, scoop out the centres. Roughly chop the flesh and add it to the onions. Halve the tomatoes, scoop the seeds and juice into a sieve set over a bowl, then chop the flesh. Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan and cook everything for 10 mins until nice and soft. Add a little more oil if you need to. Stir in the parsley, leaving a little for scattering at the end.
• Lay the aubergine halves in a baking dish and divide the tomato mixture between them. Pour over the juice from the tomatoes, drizzle with more olive oil and bake for 30 mins until the aubergines have collapsed.
• Meanwhile, mix the tzatziki ingredients together and put in a small serving bowl.
• Season the lamb with salt, black pepper and a pinch of paprika. Griddle, grill or barbecue for 3 mins on each side or until the fat is nicely browned, then put in a serving dish and squeeze over the lemon halves. Scatter the aubergines with parsley, then serve with the lamb and tzatziki.

IMAM BAYILDI

Steps:

• Trim the stalk ends of the eggplants (you may leave the stalk). Peel off 1/2-inch-wide strips of skin lengthwise, leaving alternate strips of peel and bare flesh. Make a deep cut on one side of each eggplant lengthwise, from one end to the other, but not right through, so as to make a pocket. Soak the eggplants in water with 1 tablespoon of salt and leave for 30 minutes, then drain and dry them.
• For the filling, soften the onions gently in the oil, but do not let them color. Add garlic and stir for a moment or two, until the aroma rises. Remove from the heat and stir in the parsley and tomatoes. Season to taste with salt, and mix well.
• Stuff the eggplants with this mixture and place them tightly side by side, with the opening on top, in a wide, shallow pan. Pour over them the oil and enough tomato juice to cover, mixed with a little sugar, salt, and the lemon juice. Cover the pan and simmer gently for about 45 minutes, or until the eggplants are soft and the liquid is much reduced.
• If you want to bake the stuffed eggplants instead, arrange them in a baking dish, cut side on top, with the rest of the ingredients poured over. Cover with foil and cook in a preheated 400°F oven for 1 hour, or until soft.
• Allow to cool before arranging on a serving dish. Serve cold.
• Some cooks fry the eggplants very briefly first in olive oil.
• If the eggplants are too large for 1 person, cut them in half and make the slash into the cut side.
• For zucchini imam bayildi, hollow 2 pounds zucchini by scooping out their centers from the stem end, using an apple corer (see page 315), taking care not to pierce them right through. Stuff with the above filling and set the zucchini in layers, side by side, on a bed of tomato slices in a large pan. Pour over them about 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil mixed with a teaspoon of sugar and a little salt. Cover the vegetables with water and simmer, covered, over low heat, for 1/2 hour, or until soft.
• Small eggplants (3 1/2-4 1/2 inches long) are usually stuffed whole, although medium-sized ones can also be used. The usual way to stuff them whole is to cut a slice off the stem end just below the hull and reserve it to use as a "cork" and to scoop out some of the pulp with a small knife or a pointed spoon. (Use the discarded pulp for another dish.) Rolling the eggplant on the table and pressing it with the palm of your hand facilitates this. The eggplants are stuffed, and closed with the reserved "corks." They are placed upright in a large pan, packed tightly with the "cork" ends facing upwards, and cooked in stock or tomato juice which is poured over to almost cover them. Zucchini and small bell peppers, stuffed with the same filling, are sometimes cooked together in the same pot with the eggplants.
• A Turkish way is to leave about 1/2 inch of the stalks on, remove the hulls, and peel off 1/2-inch-wide strips lengthwise, leaving alternating strips of bare flesh and shiny peel. This ensures that the eggplants keep their shape, while the peeled strips allow the bitter juices to escape after sprinkling with salt. A deep slash is made along the center, right through the eggplant, to within 1/2 inch of each end, and the filling is pressed into this slash.
• A third way, used when the eggplants are baked, is to cut the eggplants in half lengthwise. In this case the eggplants can be a little larger. They are peeled or not, and a bit of the pulp is scooped out to hold the filling.

IMAM BAYILDI

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to moderate 350 degrees F. Heat half the olive oil in a large heavy-based frying pan and cook the eggplants on all sides for about 8-10 minutes, until the cut sides are golden. Remove from the pan and scoop out some flesh lining the skins. 2. Heat the remaining olive oil in the same frying pan and cook the onion over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until transparent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomato, oregano, parsley, currants, cinnamon, reserved eggplant flesh and salt and pepper, to taste. 3. Place the eggplant shells in a large ovenproof dish and fill each with tomato mixture. 4. Mix the lemon juice, sugar, tomato juice and some salt and pour over the eggplant. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and cook for another 10 minutes. To serve, place on a serving platter and lightly drizzle with any remaining lemon juice. Note: This dish is best served at room temperature and makes an excellent first course.