Miniature Doman eggplants stuffed to bursting with juicy marinated vegetables─and enough peppers to knock a trained Fist of Rhalgr monk out cold.
There are days where I crave some spicy food. This original Turkish dish (İmam bayıldı) fits the bill just perfectly. Translated into English, this dish means ‘The Imam who fainted.’ Whether you choose to faint due to the spiciness or just the juiciness of this dish is entirely up to you!
You will need
2 medium-sized eggplants
6 medium-sized tomatoes (firm)
1 large onion
2-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2-4 chili peppers (to taste and depending on what type of peppers you use)
1 small can of tomato paste OR 2 tablespoons Turkish tomato pepper paste
240 milliliters (1 cup) water
A handful of chopped parsley and dill
Olive oil
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (400 °F). Fill the eggplants with the tomato-onion mix until they are bursting full. To make the tomato sauce, simply mix the tomato paste with water. Spoon about a tablespoon of sauce over the eggplants and pour the rest into the bottom of the baking dish. Bake for approximately 20 minutes.
Peel and slice the onion in small strips. Chop the tomatoes in half, remove the seeds, and cut in small strips as well. Chop the peppers finely. Using the same frying pan that was used to fry the eggplant, reduce the heat to medium and fry the onions. Add the chopped garlic and keep on stirring to avoid the vegetables from getting burnt. Toss in both the peppers and tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes are soft, but not too mushy. Remove from heat and stir in the parsley and dill.
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (400 °F). Fill the eggplants with the tomato-onion mix until they are bursting full. To make the tomato sauce, simply mix the tomato paste with water. Spoon about a tablespoon of sauce over the eggplants and pour the rest into the bottom of the baking dish. Bake for approximately 20 minutes.
The eggplant dish can be either served as is with some rice, or as a vegetable side dish.
