Sweet and Savory Eggplant with Yogurt Sauce

Some months ago I went to an Afghan cooking workshop, I liked it very much. Since then, I have made this Eggplant dish many times. Some colleagues of my husband came from India, I served this, they loved it. They said it is very much like the food in India from where they came.

Sweet and Savory Eggplant with Yogurt Sauce
(Borani bademjan)
Ingredients:

2 onions, chopped
¼ cup oil
2 medium sized eggplants
3 garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
yogurt sauce (see recipe below)
1 teaspoon turmeric

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450 ºF. Wrap the eggplants in foil and place in oven on a baking sheet. Bake for about 45 minutes.
In a large skillet, heat the oil. Fry the chopped onions until golden. Add garlic, tomatoes, black pepper and turmeric. Stir and let boil a little. When the eggplants are cooked, cut them in half and scoop out the pulp with a spoon.

Add this pulp to the skillet with the onions and tomatoes. Reduce heat to the pan and keep cooking the mixture, stirring occasionally. Cook for about 30 minutes.

Serve with yogurt sauce.

Yogurt sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup yogurt
1 cup sour cream
1 ½ teaspoon crushed garlic
1 teaspoon salt
juice of 1 lemon

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl.


To serve with the eggplant, arrange a layer with half the yogurt sauce, add all the eggplant mixture, and finish with the rest of the yogurt sauce.

Note: When tasting the eggplant mixture by itself, we notice there isn't any salt. Adding the yogurt sauce changes the taste completely. But if you want, you can add a 1/2 teaspoon of salt at the time you add the pepper, while cooking the eggplant.