Greek eggplant is a true masterpiece of high culinary philosophy that will not leave anyone indifferent.
Greek cuisine
Eggplant occupies one of the main places in the list of favorite vegetables of the Greeks and is a popular ingredient that is included in many famous and tasty dishes of the national cuisine of Greece. The Mediterranean roots of the dishes popular in this country can explain the originality and brightness of any dish prepared by the ancestors of Plato and Aristotle.
In Greek, eggplant sounds like melitzána, which is where the names of many dishes popular with the Hellenes come from. Definitely, everyone is hearing about a dish called moussaka, which, of course, is worthy of the attention of all gourmets.
Greek eggplant: recipe with minced meat
For the first time, this recipe was widely demonstrated by the famous culinary specialist from Greece Nicholas Tselementes at the beginning of the 20th century. To make the dish with a rich and rich aroma, it is recommended to flavor the moussaka with white wine.
For preparation you will need the following ingredients:
- eggplants - 700 g;
- potatoes - 500 g;
- minced meat - 500 g;
- onion - 2 pcs.;
- canned tomatoes - 3-4 pcs.;
- cheese - 300 g;
- vegetable oil - 2 tbsp;
- milk - 0.5 l;
- a glass of white wine;
- flour - 2 tbsp. l.;
- butter - 50 g;
- eggs - 2 pcs.
You need to prepare the cheese. To do this, you need to grate it and set it aside for a while. After this, you should start preparing the sauce - first you need to melt the butter, fry the flour in it and pour milk into this mixture, as well as pre-beaten eggs. Mix everything and wait until it thickens. At the end of cooking, you need to salt and pepper the sauce to taste, pour cheese into the resulting mass and add nutmeg.
To prepare the meat filling, you need to fry the minced meat; it is added to the frying pan in the already heated oil. As soon as it changes color, throw pre-chopped onion into the meat and fry the entire contents for 5 minutes. Then pour chopped parsley into the minced meat, add salt and pepper. Pour tomato puree into the minced meat and wait for the filling to warm up with the tomatoes.
To prepare the vegetable component of the dish, you need to cut eggplants and potatoes into slices and fry them in oil.
Then it is necessary to form moussaka from the resulting blanks - eggplants in Greek. To do this, coat the pan with oil and lay out the casserole in layers:
- half an eggplant;
- half a potato;
- minced meat in tomato;
- half a potato;
- half an eggplant;
- sauce (fill the contents of the mold with it).
Bake for 40 minutes at 200°C.
Eggplant stuffed with rice
Baked eggplants in the shape of boats, stuffed with rice and vegetables, are a dietary, but at the same time satisfying and appetizing dish. To cook Greek eggplants in the oven (with rice), you need to prepare the following components of the dish:
- eggplants - 500 g;
- brown or white rice - 4 tbsp. l.;
- fresh tomatoes - 2 pcs.;
- onion - 1 pc.;
- dried basil - 1 tsp;
- sunflower oil - 2 tbsp.
First you need to prick the eggplants in several places. This is done so that the vegetables do not burst or explode during heat treatment in the oven. Next, you need to cover the grill on which the eggplants will be baked with foil, put the vegetables on it and put them in a preheated oven for half an hour.
After the allotted time, the vegetables should be removed from the oven and cut in half lengthwise. Next, carefully cut out the pulp so that the peel is not damaged. After which the halves can be set aside and the pulp can be chopped with a knife.
Now you need to move on to preparing the filling. Rice, pour cold water, need to be boiled over low heat for 20 minutes. The onion should be chopped and fried in sunflower oil for 2 minutes. Next, you need to finely chop the tomatoes and add them to the onions. Simmer the vegetable mixture for 5 minutes, then add cooked rice, eggplant pulp and dried basil to the same pan. Add salt, pepper, stir the contents of the pan and you can turn off the heat. Stuff the eggplant halves with the prepared filling and decorate with herbs on top.
Greek eggplant for the winter
Unfortunately, in winter there is no opportunity to purchase eggplants. However, some thrifty housewives found a way out of this situation and learned to stock up on this vegetable in canned form.
To do this, you need to prepare the following products:
- eggplant - 3 kg;
- pepper (sweet) - 0.5 kg;
- tomatoes - 0.7 kg;
- onions - 0.7 kg;
- greens - 25 g;
- ground black pepper - 5 g;
- ground allspice - 5 g;
- vegetable oil - 0.5 l;
- head of garlic.
Eggplants, peppers and onions must be washed and peeled. Then cut the pepper and eggplant into pieces and blanch: eggplant for 15 minutes, and pepper for 5 minutes. Then you need to take care of the onion, cut it into half rings, 5 mm thick, and then fry it together with the eggplants in vegetable oil.
Wash tomatoes and herbs. Chop the greens with a knife and grind the tomatoes using a meat grinder. Next, the resulting slurry must be poured into an enamel pan, and eggplants, fried with onions, and peppers should be placed in it. Then add garlic to the preparation, previously passed through a garlic press, salt and pepper it. Mix the contents and heat to 80-90 °C, remembering to stir the eggplants periodically.
Before distributing into jars, you should add spices to the prepared dish. Greek eggplants are sterilized at a temperature of 100 °C for an hour.
Before preparing such a dish, you will need to carefully process the vegetables, which is an important condition. Young eggplants need to be washed well, cut into circles, then put in a bowl, seasoning with salt to your taste. It is customary to leave the product in this state for twenty minutes.
As soon as this time has expired, you will definitely need to rinse and dry the vegetables. Please note that this is usually done so that vegetables such as eggplants can lose their bitterness, as a result of which they become tender and tasty. If we talk about onions and large tomatoes, then do not forget to wash them thoroughly, chopping them into small cubes.
As for the heat treatment process, it should immediately be noted that the snack can be prepared in different ways. For example, most chefs even want to bake vegetables in the oven, but if you want, you can also fry them in a frying pan, since there are no restrictions here.
To implement this idea, you will need to heat a saucepan with olive oil, after which you can begin to lay out the eggplant slices that you have prepared. In order for the vegetables to be evenly fried, as a result of which they will become as appetizing as possible, you will need to roll them in wheat flour, which is an important condition.
At the moment when the hostess begins to notice that the eggplants have browned, then naturally you can take them out and place them on a large plate. Please note that you should never waste time and place the onions in the frying pan in which the oil remains, frying them until transparent.
After this, chopped tomatoes should be added to it. In this state, the vegetables are stewed for about ten minutes, as a result of which the sauce can acquire the desired consistency; it can be either thick or liquid. Now you yourself understand that Greek eggplants, the recipe with photos of which you can see online, will definitely amaze all gourmets without exception.
The finished eggplants should be poured with sauce and served, garnished with a sprig of fresh herbs. They are perfect as an addition to side dishes, as well as main meat courses. Therefore, using your imagination, you can create real culinary masterpieces using eggplants.
There really is nothing difficult in preparing such a tasty and appetizing snack. This means that, if desired, everyone without exception can prepare it. Moreover, you learned how to properly and competently use such a tasty, meaty vegetable as eggplant.
Naturally, in addition to the described recipe, this product is usually used for preparing certain appetizers and main courses, so you can always implement other culinary ideas if you wish. For example, you can always prepare traditional, delicious eggplant caviar, which has a unique taste.
In the summer, you can’t ignore such a product as eggplant. And all because they are extremely useful. Blue ones, as they are popularly called, contain a large amount of fiber, pectin, potassium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, carotene, vitamins C, B, B2, PP.
It is also important that this vegetable is ideal for those who are watching their weight. There are only 28 kcal per 100 g of eggplant. In general, this is not just a tasty product, but one full of benefits.
That's why we decided to prepare another one for you eggplant recipe. Greek eggplants can be prepared even for the winter!
Ingredients
Preparation
- 1 Rinse the eggplants. Make a 5 cm long cut in the middle of each vegetable. Boil the vegetable until tender. Then cool it in cold water. Place the eggplants under pressure. This is necessary so that the juice comes out of them.
- 2 Let's prepare the filling. Grate the carrots and simmer them in heated sunflower oil for 5 minutes. Cut the bell pepper into strips. Pass the garlic through a press. Finely chop the parsley. Place all this in a bowl. Add salt and pepper, stir.
- 3 Fill the eggplants with the filling. Place them in a saucepan. Cover and place weight on top. After 3 days, you can taste it or put it in jars and close with airtight lids.
I cook Greek eggplants often and all year round! Of course, living in Greece and not preparing one of the most delicious dishes of this cuisine is simply a sin! In addition, the eggplants here are delicious, and the tomatoes are a delight to taste. Add olive oil, traditional Greek herbs, and Greek eggplants are ready!
Greeks most often serve such eggplants as a hot appetizer with fresh white bread. In my family, such eggplants are also eaten as a side dish for fish.
Let's prepare the products according to the list.
Cut a large eggplant into circles of equal thickness - 3-4 millimeters, no thicker.
Place the chopped eggplants in a bowl and fill them with salted water, the water should be very salty. This is necessary to remove all the bitterness from the eggplants. Leave the eggplants in the water for 15 minutes and prepare the tomato sauce yourself.
Tomatoes can be peeled, or they can be sliced with the skin on. Finely chop the parsley, just chop the garlic finely with a knife.
Place the tomatoes in the pan.
Add parsley and garlic to the tomatoes.
Now it’s the turn of spices and seasonings. Add salt and sugar (add more sugar if your tomatoes are sour). We also add aromatic basil, oregano and thyme.
Place the pan on the heat and simmer the sauce for about 20 minutes, stirring until the tomato pieces become soft and almost puree. The sauce is ready. If you wish, you can puree it in a blender until smooth; we like to feel the tomato pieces in the sauce, so I just crush the tomato pieces a little with a fork.
Remove the eggplants from the water and dry with a paper kitchen towel. Dip each eggplant slice in flour.
In a frying pan with olive oil, fry the eggplants until soft and golden brown. Place the fried eggplants on a paper towel to remove excess oil.
Place the eggplant slices on a dish in one layer and pour aromatic tomato sauce over them.
Delicious Greek eggplants are ready! Bon appetit!
A simple recipe for eggplants in the oven in Greek, a home cooking recipe with photos and a step-by-step description of the cooking process. This recipe is easy to make at home in just 50 minutes. Contains only 301 kilocalories.
- Complexity: An easy recipe
- National cuisine: home kitchen
- Type of dish: Second courses
- Preparation time: 15 minutes
- Cooking time: 50 min
- Calorie Amount: 301 kilocalories
- Number of servings: 6 servings
Ingredients for six servings
- eggplant 800 g
- tomato sauce 1.5 cups 300 g
- hard cheese 70 g
- garlic 2 cloves
- olive oil 0.5 cups
- sugar 0.5 tsp
- salt 0.5 tsp
- ground black pepper 0.5 teaspoon
- dried oregano 0.5 tbsp. spoons
- parsley, finely chopped 10-15 g
Step-by-step preparation
- Eggplant, cheese, tomato sauce, oregano, garlic, butter, salt, sugar and black pepper are all you need to prepare this delicious and simple dish.
- Cut the eggplants into 0.5 cm thick slices.
- Place the eggplants in a saucepan, sprinkle with 1.5 teaspoons of salt, stir and leave for half an hour at room temperature.
- Meanwhile, grate the cheese on a coarse grater and place in the refrigerator.
- Crush the garlic with the flat side of the knife.
- Chop the parsley and put it in the refrigerator.
- Prepare the sauce. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a small saucepan, add crushed garlic cloves...
- ...and immediately pour in tomato sauce. Add sugar, oregano, 0.5 teaspoon of salt, pepper and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the finished sauce from the heat and set aside.
- After half an hour, pour cold water over the eggplants, rinse with your hands and drain.
- Transfer the eggplants to a paper or waffle towel and cover with the same towel to squeeze out the liquid.
- Place the pan over medium heat, add 2-3 tablespoons of oil and heat well. Then turn the heat to minimum.
- Place eggplants in a heated frying pan. Fry over medium heat until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes.
- Then turn the eggplants over to the other side and fry for another 3-4 minutes.
- Remove the fried eggplants from the pan and place on a paper towel to drain excess fat. Do the same with the remaining eggplants and the remaining oil. Turn on the oven to preheat at 180 degrees.
- Place the fried eggplants in a heat-resistant dish...
- ...pour in the prepared sauce and place in a preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, remove the pan with eggplants from the oven and sprinkle them with grated cheese.
- Place the eggplants back into the oven. Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until crispy.
- Remove the eggplants from the oven and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Greek-style eggplants cooked in the oven are delicious both hot and cold.
