Cuisine – Autumnal aubergines

With these lovely cooler nights I have found it easy to move away from salads and barbecues and am getting back into the kitchen to prepare a few slow-cooked dishes. There’s plenty of inspiration as aubergines (eggplants) are at their best through March and I am incorporating them into lovely stewed dishes where I can combine them with ripe capsicums and tomatoes.

My ultimate aubergine dishes have their origins around the Mediterranean – Greek moussaka, Italian lasagne and aubergine parmigiana, the French ratatouille and, of course, myriad dishes from the Middle East. I have fond memories of youthful travels in the Greek islands and eating in inexpensive restaurants where no English was spoken. We would accompany the chef (always an older woman who was rather grandma-like) into the kitchen.

There would be two or three pots bubbling away on the burner and we’d peek into them, absorb the fragrance and decide just which we’d eat that evening. I suspect those dishes became part of my DNA as I always think about those wonderful flavours when I am cooking that style of food.

More recently, with the influence of so many good cooks from Asia taking up the pans in our country, we have been able to find the smaller elongated aubergines that are known as Japanese or Asian eggplants. But both large purple European globes and these smaller Asian varieties require cooking for a long enough time to render them soft and silken. An undercooked aubergine is not tasty or nice!

One of the features of aubergine flesh is that it really soaks up oil and yet too much oil will make it greasy and not at all tempting. If you want to grill or roast it, brush with oil and cook at quite a high temperature. It is easy to roast the aubergine whole but ensure you prick the skin all over. A couple of weeks ago, I left an aubergine roasting in the oven and had forgotten to prick it. There was an almighty explosion and I thought the oven door had shattered –but no it was just the aubergine exploding, making one hell of a mess of my oven!

Salt is very necessary when cooking aubergines as alone they can lack flavour. Many food writers suggest you salt the aubergine before cooking it, leaving the salt to draw out any bitterness, but seriously you do not need to do this at this time of year when this wonderful vegetable has grown in the earth and ripened in the sun.

This recipe is made really tasty by the added spices and garlic. Be sure to taste and do not be afraid to add extra salt!

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Tasty Stuffed Aubergines

1 large or 2 small aubergines
½ cup water
4 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
3 tbsp milk
2 shallots or 1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
250g minced meat (pork, beef, lamb or chicken)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten

Chunk of cheddar or manchego cheese for grating

Slice the aubergine lengthwise and place in a pan with the water and one tablespoon of the oil. Bring the water to a simmer and place a tight fitting lid on the pan. Allow the aubergine to soften in the steam for about 8 minutes.

Leave aside to cool.

Meanwhile soak the crumbs in the milk and start to make the stuffing.

Put the remaining oil in a wide frying pan and add the onion with the crushed garlic. Gently fry until turning golden then add the tomato and continue to gently fry for five minutes, stirring often. Add the minced meat with the spices, turn the heat up slightly and stir for about 5 minutes.

Scoop the flesh out carefully from the aubergine shell and chop this up before adding to the cooked mince, with the crumbs and milk and plenty of salt and pepper to taste. Cook a little longer, remove from the heat and stir in the egg.

Spoon this mixture back into the aubergine shells, sprinkle with plenty of grated cheese and place in a preheated oven 180°C for about 20 minutes until golden and bubbling. Serve hot with a leafy green salad.
Serves 2

Note: The recipe can be doubled for four. This can also be made ahead and reheated.