İmam Bayıldı (Olive Oil Stuffed Eggplant)
امام بایلدی (زیتون کے تیل والے بھرے بینگن)
İmam bayıldı means "the imam fainted", and the story goes that a religious leader swooned when he tasted it (some say from delight, others from the cost of the olive oil). It's the best-known of Turkey's dishes: vegetables cooked slowly in olive oil and eaten at room temperature, never hot. Eggplants are stuffed with a soft, sweet mix of onions, garlic and tomatoes and braised until they collapse. It's vegetarian, rich and even better the next day.
- ⏱ Total: 1 hr 25 min
- Prep: 25 min
- Cook: 1 hr
- Medium
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Peel the eggplants in stripes, soak in salted water for 20 minutes, then dry well. Fry them whole in half the olive oil in a wide for 8–10 minutes, turning, until golden and soft. Set aside.
In the same pan, cook the onions in the remaining oil over medium-low heat for 12–15 minutes until very soft and sweet but not browned. Add the garlic and green peppers for the last 3 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, sugar and salt and cook for 5 minutes until just soft. Stir in most of the parsley.
Split each eggplant lengthwise down the middle without cutting through, open it into a boat and fill with the onion-tomato mixture. Lay them side by side in the pan.
Pour the hot water and lemon juice around them, cover and cook on the lowest heat for 30–35 minutes, until the eggplants are completely soft and most of the liquid is absorbed.
Let them cool in the pan to room temperature. Scatter with the remaining parsley and serve with bread, as a main dish or part of a meze spread.
Kitchen notes
Don't skimp on the olive oil. It's what makes zeytinyağlı dishes taste rich and silky. Ordinary olive oil (not extra virgin) is fine for cooking.
Serve at room temperature, not hot and not straight from the fridge. Hot, the flavours are muted; cold, the oil sets.
It keeps for 3 days in the fridge. Take it out an hour before serving.
The dish that made the imam faint
Turkish cooking has a whole family of dishes called , “with olive oil”: green beans, artichokes, leeks and stuffed vine leaves, all cooked gently in olive oil and eaten cool. They come from the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts, where olive trees grow everywhere. İmam bayıldı is the most famous of them.
Slow and gentle
Unlike a Pakistani , where onions are fried until brown, here the onions are cooked slowly until soft, sweet and pale, almost like a jam. The tomatoes are added only at the end so they stay fresh. Then the stuffed eggplants braise on the lowest heat until they slump and soak up the oil and juices.
For Pakistani tables
İmam bayıldı is a good choice for vegetarian guests and for hot summer days, because it’s served cool. It’s also a natural partner to baingan bharta lovers who want to try something new. Use the long eggplants sold for baingan masala.
Serving
Serve with bread as a light main course, or as part of a spread with kısır, çoban salatası and yogurt. For a hot, meaty version, try karnıyarık.
Questions people ask
Why is it served cold?
Turkish olive oil dishes are traditionally eaten at room temperature, when the oil is fluid and the flavours of the vegetables are clearest.
Can I use cooking oil instead of olive oil?
You can, but the taste will be flatter. Olive oil is the character of this dish.
Can I eat it hot?
Of course. Many people do. It's just traditionally served at room temperature.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 330
- Protein
- 4 g
- Fat
- 27 g
- Carbs
- 22 g
