Translated by Majd Nassan
Eggplant fatteh is one of numerous types in the Middle Eastern region, a toasted pita bread topped with layers of eggplant, saucy minced meat, and finished off with a layer of tahina sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 kg of small eggplants (can be found at Exotic Asian shops)
- vegetable oil or butter for frying
- 50 g pine nuts
- 1 piece of onion chopped
- 500 g
- 1 pinch of cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white or black pepper
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- A little bit of water to dilute the tomato paste
- 3 Arabic pita bread
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 kg yoghurt
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 200 g tahini
- 30g fresh parsley, chopped
Cooking Instructions
- Using a vegetable digger, dig out the eggplant from the top while ensuring the bottom remains intact.
- Heat a nonstick pan at medium heat. Add olive oil and the dug out 5. eggplants move them around until all sides are nicely browned.
- In the meantime, heat another frying pan over a medium heat, add a little oil and butter and fry the pine nuts until golden brown. Remove from heat and let it cool for 10 minutes.
- In the same pan, add the finely chopped onions and cook until translucent before adding the minced lamb and cinnamon. Cook the meat for about 5 minutes or until it is done, add half the pine nuts and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and let it cool for 10 minutes.
- In a pot, add some water and the tomato paste and a pinch of salt.
- Stuff the eggplant with the cooked meat all the way to the top and place in the tomato sauce pot in a standing position. Let it cook for about 15 minutes until the zucchini is cooked.
- Cut the pita bread into small squares or break it up using your hands. Heat a frying pan with a little oil and butter, and toast the bread until golden brown. This delivers a stronger flavor, but you can also toast them in the oven.
- In a bowl, whisk the yoghurt, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, a little of water, salt and pepper.
- Using a deep and large serving plate, assemble the dish by layering the pita chips on the bottom of your serving dish. Top with a layer of the stuffed eggplant, followed by a layer of the remaining tomato sauce and then finally the layer of the yogurt/tahina sauce.
- Sprinkle some roasted pine nuts and parsley on top.
