Recipe: Badhinjan Maqli ma Laban (Arab Levant, Lebanon) Fried Eggplant with Yogurt

Winner of the James Beard/ KitchenAid Cookbook of the Year 2000 and Winner of the Beard Award for the Best Writing on Food 2000.

May 20, 2018

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Fried Eggplant with Yogurt
Badhinjan Maqli ma Laban
Region: Arab Levant, Lebanon
Category: Antipasto, Meze, Tapas, and Hors d'Oeuvres
Season: Summer
Difficulty: Easy

In this Lebanese preparation, often served as part of a meze, the eggplant slices are fried and then arranged on a platter and covered with a pungent garlic-flavored yogurt sauce with lots of fresh coriander leaves (cilantro). Both Turks and Arabs delight in dishes that are hot and cool at the same time. This eggplant dish is also excellent with grilled lamb.

[photo: Alejandra Ramos, AlwaysOrder Dessert.Com]

Yield: Makes 4 servings
Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Olive oil for frying

2 eggplants (about 2 ½ pounds), halved lengthwise, cut into ¼ -inch rounds 6 large garlic cloves

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups whole plain yogurt

Leaves from 1 bunch of fresh coriander (cilantro), finely chopped

1. Preheat the frying oil to 375 degrees F.

2. Fry the eggplant in batches until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes a side. Remove, drain and cool on a tray lined with paper towels.

3. In a mortar, mash the garlic with the salt until mushy. Stir the garlic into the yogurt with the coriander. Transfer the eggplant slices to a serving platter and cover with the yogurt. Serve at room temperature.

Variation:

Note:

Posted: 08/05/2013

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