Turkish Eggplant Aubergine Lentil Stew Recipes

TURKISH EGGPLANT (AUBERGINE) LENTIL STEW

Steps:

• Peel eggplant in strips, then cut lengthwise into strips.
• Cut each strip into 3 pieces, salt heavily with kosher salt and let it sit in a colander for 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, cover lentils with 2 inches of water and bring to a boil.
• Lower to simmer and cook 15 minutes, drain.
• In a bowl add 1 tbsp olive oil and onion, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, mint, tomato paste, and red pepper.
• Rinse the eggplant and dry.
• In a dutch oven layer half of the onion mixture.
• Top with a layer of eggplant, and a layer of lentils.
• Repeat.
• Pour remaining olive oil around sides and over the top.
• Drizzle with the pomegranate molasses.
• Bring to a boil, lower heat to simmer and cook 1 1/2 hours.

TURKISH LENTIL AND EGGPLANT STEW

Steps:

• Boil the lentils in 2 cups of water and salt, until partially cooked. Drain and set aside.
• Heat the 1/4 cup olive oil and add in the onion and the garlic and saute for about 5 minutes until soft and translucent.
• Add in the tomatoes, mint, thyme, red pepper flakes and salt and cook for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft and the sauce has begun simmering and thickens slightly.
• Slice the eggplant and place in a colander and sprinkle with the salt and allow it to rest for about 30 minutes. This can be done at the beginning if you wish.
• Blot with paper towels to remove any excess moisture.
• To assemble, place some of the tomato sauce at the bottom of a heavy bottomed pot (with a tight fitting lid). Add in a layer of the eggplants, drizzle with a little olive oil and add in the lentils. Follow this order ending with the tomato sauce until all the ingredients are used up.
• Top with the pomegranate molasses, drizzle with the remaining olive oil. Cover the pot tightly and cook over low heat for an hour and half.
• Let the stew rest for another 30 minutes or a couple of hours before serving.
• To serve mix in the chopped parsley or mint, garnish with the almonds and serve with crusty bread.

EGGPLANT, LENTILS, AND PEPPERS COOKED IN OLIVE OIL (TURKISH)

Steps:

• Put the green lentils in a pan of boiling water, stir and cover. Simmer in low heat for 15 minutes. Drain the water and set aside.
• Using a vegetable peeler, peel the aubergine/eggplant in zebra stripes. Then, cut the aubergine/eggplant in half lengthways and cut each half into medium slices. Spread them on a wide tray, sprinkle salt over and leave aside for 15 minutes. Using a paper towel, squeeze the excess water out of the aubergines/eggplants.
• Heat the 3 Tbsps of olive oil in a heavy pan and very lightly sauté the aubergine/eggplant slices for a minute or two. This will help aubergines/eggplants to soften up and start bringing out their lovely sweet flesh.
• In a large bowl, combine the partially cooked lentils, onion, garlic, bell peppers, chopped tomatoes, salt, dried mint, th rest of the olive oil, and the sugar. Season with ground black pepper, check the seasoning and add more salt if needed.
• In a wide heavy pan, place a layer of the aubergine/eggplant slices. Spread the half of the vegetable mixture over the aubergines/eggplants evenly. Place the remainder of the aubergine/eggplant slices over the top and spread the remaining vegetable mixture over also. Add the water, cover and cook on a medium to low heat for about 35 minutes.
• Once cooked, cover and cool the dish in the pan, this will allow the flavours to develop and blend well. Serve at room temperature with some crusty bread.
• Afiyet Olsun (means 'May you be happy and healthy with this food you eat").