Book of Days Tales

Afghani independence is celebrated on this day to commemorate the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919 that ended the third Anglo-Afghan war and freed the country from British colonial rule – even though the treaty was actually signed on August 8^th.  As is abundantly clear, independence from Britain has not stopped major powers from meddling in Afghanistan for over a century without much success in imposing their will on the people.  Some nations never learn.

The national dish of Afghanistan is kabuli pulao, but since this lamb and rice concoction is quite close to Bedu mansaf, which I gave a recipe for on August 16^th, I am going to stray farther afield and give you borani banjan, a fried eggplant dish served with a garlic flavored yogurt.

Ingredients

    4 small eggplants

    1¼ cups (300 mL) vegetable oil

    4 cloves garlic, crushed

    2 green chile peppers, sliced lengthwise

    3 medium tomatoes, chopped

    2 Tbsp (33 gm) tomato paste

    ½ tsp ground turmeric

    salt

    1 medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced thin

    2 medium tomatoes, cut into 1 cm thick rounds

Garlic yogurt sauce

    1 cup (240 mL) plain yogurt

    2 cloves garlic, crushed

    ½ tsp salt (or to taste)

Garnish

     paprika

     dried or fresh mint leaves

Instructions

Mix the yogurt sauce ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate.  This sauce can be made the day before to allow the tastes to fuse but it should be brought to room temperature before using.

Peel the eggplants. Cut them through the middle horizontally and then slice them into 1 cm thick slices. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a sauté pan over high heat. When the oil is hot, carefully add a few eggplant slices. Cook until golden, about 2 – 3 min per side. Transfer the fried eggplant to a strainer or wire rack set over a bowl to allow any excess oil to drain. Repeat until all the eggplants are cooked.

There should be leftover oil in the pan after frying the eggplant. For the following steps, you need ¼ cup (60 ml) of oil. Reduce the temperature to medium. Add the garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add the green pepper, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, turmeric, and salt. Stir and cook for another 1 – 2 minutes. Lower the heat to medium-low. Place the sliced onion over the sauce in a single layer. Then lay half the eggplant over the onions, layer the tomato slices over that, and finish with the remaining eggplant slices. Cover the pan and cook until the onions are soft, about 20 minutes. You can also finish this step in a medium oven if you use a Dutch oven for cooking the sauce and vegetables.

Add some of the yogurt sauce to the base of a serving dish. Then scoop up the eggplant, tomato, and onion mixture and transfer it to the dish. Remove the peppers from the bottom of the pan and place them decoratively on top. Scoop up any remaining sauce and drizzle over the dish. Finish with another drizzle of yogurt sauce, mint leaves, and paprika for garnish. Serve with flatbread.