Baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes
This year, I had an exceptional success with eggplant in my garden, so you can expect at least one more recipe for a dish with this vegetable as the main ingredient. This time, I invite you to a dish of baked eggplant, lentils and tomatoes. In this dish, I combined baked vegetables with canned green lentils, delicious yoghurt sauce, fresh herbs and pomegranate seeds. Personally, I’m a big fan of dishes inspired by Middle Eastern cuisine, as is the case here. Both eggplant and pomegranate seeds, as well as fresh herbs, can often be found in dishes from this cuisine.
To prepare baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes, I start by cutting, seasoning the eggplant, then baking it as well as the tomatoes. By pre-baking, the subsequent cooking time of vegetables is significantly shortened. I cook the baked vegetables covered for a few minutes with lentils, garlic and chili, and after cooking, I serve them with sauce, herbs and pomegranate seeds. This dish is perfect for dinner, lunch or as a snack. It is an ideal addition to meat, but it can also be served as a stand-alone dish, so I encourage you to try the below recipe for baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes.
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Ingredients for baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes.
- 350 g eggplant
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 350 g cocktail tomatoes
- 2 big cloves of garlic
- 1 small chili pepper
- 240 g canned green lentil (can 400 g lentil + brine)
- 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon of chopped mint
- 50 ml vegetable broth or water
- 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
Yoghurt sauce:
- 100 g Greek yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
- a pinch of salt
- a pinch of black pepper
Additionally:
- seeds from 1/2 pomegranate
How to make baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes.
Wash the eggplant, dry it, cut it into 0.5 cm thick slices and place it in a bowl. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, rub each slice with it and set it aside for 30 minutes. Afterwards, lightly squeeze the eggplant slices, place them on a baking tray and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Drizzle the cherry tomatoes with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and also place them on a baking tray. Place the tray with vegetables in an oven preheated to 180 degrees Celsius. Bake the tomatoes for 30 minutes and the eggplant for 40-45 minutes. Turn the roasted eggplant over while baking.
Pour the remaining olive oil into a pot, add mashed garlic and finely chopped chili pepper. Fry for a few seconds. Next, add the roasted cherry tomatoes and eggplant, pour in the vegetable broth and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Then add canned lentils, the remaining salt and pepper, cover the pot with a lid and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes.
Mix Greek yoghurt with lemon juice, a pinch of salt and pepper in a cup. Place the vegetables from the pot on a serving plate, pour the yoghurt sauce over them, sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, chopped parsley and mint.
Good to know when making baked eggplant with lentils and tomatoes.
I used a mixture of cocktail tomatoes in this dish. These were both yellow tomatoes and red tomatoes.
Vegetables prepared in this way can be served both warm and cold.
Do you like dishes with eggplant? If so, try our recipe for Eggplant and walnut rolls.
