This is very popular in Iran. A similar recipe, called buran, is to be found in al-Baghdadi’s thirteenth-century cookery manual (see appendix). There, fried meatballs are added to the puree, and the dish is seasoned with ground cumin and cinnamon.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　3 eggplants, weighing about 1 1/2 pounds total

　　3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　1 1/4 cups plain whole-milk yogurt

　　Juice of 1 lemon

　　2 cloves garlic, crushed

　　Salt

　　2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)

　　

Step 1

Broil or roast and peel the eggplants (see page 63).

　　

Step 2

Chop the flesh with a pointed knife in a colander to let the juices escape, then mash them with a fork or a spoon. Pour into a bowl and beat in the olive oil and the yogurt and mix vigorously until it is thoroughly blended with the eggplant puree. Mix in the garlic and salt, spoon into a serving bowl, and garnish, if you like, with chopped parsley. Serve cold.

　　

Variations

Step 3

Instead of yogurt, add 2/3 cup fresh thick cream or sour cream and omit the oil.

　　

Step 4

Add 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint or 1 tablespoon dried.

　　

Step 5

Garnish with 1/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads mixed with 2 tablespoons boiling water, then with 2 tablespoons of yogurt. Dribble this on top.

　　The New Book of Middle Eastern Food Copyright © 2000Knopf