Middle eastern and Mediterranean cuisines include many eggplant recipes that are extremely delicious and easy to make. This recipe, Imam Bayildi, is one of my favorite recipes. Its roots go back to the Ottoman Empire.  

As for the name of the dish, “imam” refers to a Turkish religious leader in Islam who works in mosques. “Bayildi” means fainted and is used in the Turkish language to describe how much you love something. So, imam bayıldı basically means the imam fainted. If you’re ready to burst with flavor in every bite, let’s get started. 

Ingredients, makes 4 servings

Roasting Eggplants: 

• 4 medium eggplants
• 4 tablespoon olive oil

Filling:

• 4 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped or sliced
• ¼ cup sweet green peppers, chopped
• 3 large tomatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
• 2 tablespoon parsley, chopped

Sauce:

• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

INSTRUCTIONS

For the Eggplants:

1. Preheat the oven at 350F/180C. Prepare a baking pan with baking paper. 
2. Peel the eggplants in stripes. Don’t cut the stems out.
3. Let them sit in salted water for 15 minutes. Gently squeeze and pat dry with a paper towel. 
4. Prick each eggplant a few times with a fork and place them in the baking pan.
5. Brush each eggplant with a generous amount of olive oil.
6. Bake in the oven until tender, for about 30 minutes.

Filling:

1. Heat olive oil in a pan and cook the chopped onion until transparent. 
2. Add in chopped green peppers and cook for a few minutes.
3. Add in chopped tomatoes, garlic, sugar, salt and black pepper and cook for 5 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat and add in chopped mint and parsley. Give it a good stir. 

Stuffing Eggplants:

1. Cut a slit lengthwise on each eggplant but don’t go all the way through.
2. Use a teaspoon and give each eggplant a boat shape by making enough space to stuff them.
3. Stuff the eggplants with the filling and place them in a baking pan. 

Make The Sauce and Bake:

1. In a small bowl, mix together water and tomato paste. Pour over the eggplants. 
2. Bake for 40 minutes.
3. Bon appetite