İmam Bayıldı: Stuffed aubergines cooked in olive oil

İmam Bayıldı may well be one of the most famous dishes in Turkey and has been eaten since the Ottoman period. Our beloved aubergine (patlıcan) plays the leading role. This classic dish literally means “the imam fainted”. The story goes that an imam fainted with delight after tasting this dish. No wonder; this delicious dish simply melts in your mouth and is refreshing on hot summer days.

• Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
• Using a vegetable peeler, remove strips of skin lengthwise from both aubergines to create a zebra pattern and halve the aubergines lengthwise. Score each half deeply lengthwise on the cut side without cutting through the skin on the other side, stopping about 1 cm from each end. Place the halved aubergines on a dish with the cut side facing up, sprinkle with salt (this draws moisture from the aubergines) and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Then pat thoroughly dry with sturdy kitchen paper, otherwise the aubergines will become soggy.
• Place the aubergines on a clean, large baking tray with the cut side facing up. Pour 1⁄2 tablespoon of olive oil over each half and rub in well. Bake for 25 minutes in the oven, until the aubergine is soft and the edges are starting to brown. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 200 °C.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. Grate the tomatoes and finely chop what remains, including the skin. Set aside in a bowl.
• Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, wide pan over medium heat, add the onion and fry, stirring regularly, for 8 minutes. Stir in the pepper and fry for 5 minutes. Then add the tomato and garlic and fry for 2 minutes, until the sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper, add the sugar and mix well. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped flat-leaf parsley.

• Place the aubergines side by side with the cut side facing up in a deep oven dish (25 x 18 cm) and gently open the cut in the centre of each aubergine half. Spoon the filling into it and also spread some over the top.
• Mix the ingredients for the sauce and season with salt and pepper. Carefully pour the sauce into the oven dish. Cover the oven dish with aluminium foil and bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Remove the aluminium foil, spoon the cooking juices from the dish over the aubergines and bake in the oven for another 20 minutes, until the aubergines are tender and starting to caramelise on top.
• Remove from the oven and cover with the aluminium foil. Set aside so that the aubergines can cool and the flavours can meld. Then place on a plate and spoon the cooking juices from the oven dish over the aubergines. Serve at room temperature or cold.