All-time favorite fall food: eggplants

Recently I got an email from Matthew Kaplan, the editor of FaveDiets Blog, who was asking all the recent blog hop participants about their favorite fall foods. My top-5 list definitely includes eggplants. 

When I was like 14 my aunt shared with me her favorite eggplant recipe that she learned from an Ukrainian woman while living in India. Since then I love it. I have no idea if this recipe has an official name but in my family we refer to it as just ‘sinenkie’ (the blue), the way eggplant lovers call this divine vegetable. 

This dish is simple, takes very few ingredients and makes It makes a great starter and also a side-dish for main course. It is great with rice, mashed or baked potatoes. Normally I make it the day before and refrigerate overnight - I like it served cold, but you may also want to try it hot and serve once it is ready. 

Eggplants Home Style

Ingredients (serve 6-8):

• 4 eggplants
• 4 medium-sized carrots
• 3 medium-sized onion bulbs
• 2 cups all-purposed flour
• 2 cups ketchup
• vegetable oil
• salt, pepper, sugar

Directions:

1. Slice eggplants (app. 0.4/1 cm thick).

2. Cut carrots in moon or half-moon.

3. Cut onion in rings.

4. Place carrots in a small pot, add water so that it cover the carrots, and 3 tbs sugar.

5. Put the carrots to boil, then reduce heat and cook until tender.

6. Preheat a frying pan, heat vegetable oil.

7. Roll eggplants in flour and fry both sides until golden brown.

8. In the same pan you fried eggplants sauté onions, add the remaining flour and toss often to make sure the onions don’t get fried.

9. In a large deep sauce pan with a thick bottom start organizing all the ingredients: cover the bottom with 1 tbs vegetable oil and 2 tbs water, then place the vegetable and seasoing in the following order:

• eggplants
• ketchup
• salt
• pepper
• sugar
• carrots onions

Repeat till you use all the ingredients (perfect if your last row will be eggplants).

10. If you have some water left from cooking carrots pour it in the saucepan sides along. 

11. Cover and put to boil, then reduce heat to low and cook for about an hour. Do not mix - you want to keep the layer structure.

12. Serve hot, or cool down, refrigerate overnight and serve cold. Enjoy!