A chunky fried eggplant dish made with tomatoes, red bell peppers, carrots, and garlic. Think of it as Eggplant salad, but more filling with rice. It’s the perfect way to use up vegetables from the garden and cooks all in one pan. In Ukraine, we call this “Baklazanna ikra” (eggplant caviar) or “Ovechne Ragu” (vegetable stew).
In Eastern European cuisine, eggplant is a highly versatile ingredient, mainly used in side dishes. We eat it fried, roasted, chopped, and pureed in spreads with mayonnaise. Try these eggplant recipes, Stuffed Eggplant Recipe, and Roasted Eggplant Sandwiches for tasty ways to eat aubergines!
Eggplant Recipe
This eggplant recipe is more of an eggplant salad because it can be eaten cold or warm and mostly consists of seasoned vegetables. The addition of rice makes it hearty and highly versatile.
In Ukraine, this eggplant salad was named the three-plus-three salad, mainly because you used three of each vegetable to make it.
However, it goes by many names, such as”Baklazanna ikra” (meaning aubergine caviar) or “Ovechne Ragu” (eggplant stew). My mother-in-law said this is a side dish, although I can easily see how this could be a main dish due to the rice addition.
On the other hand, my mom recalls canning this kind of eggplant dish with rice in the oven for longer storage. They would then eat it with bread as a spread.
We love it as an appetizer to bread called “Zakuska” because it’s light, soft, and pulpy in texture. You cannot detect the rice here because it cooks into the vegetables. Using brown rice is also a great way to sneak in the whole grains.
Do You Add Liquid To This Fried Eggplant Recipe?
Over the years, I have received many questions about whether you should add liquid since the eggplant cooks with the rice. This eggplant recipe calls for no additional liquid because the vegetables release liquid naturally during braising. However, many of you shared helpful tips, such as using broth for the oil, adding a splash of water to whole grains, and then adjusting the cooking time.
You have to trust the process; it really works (read all the reviews below). I should also mention that white rice cooks faster, so if you want to use whole grains, cook them longer with a splash of additional liquid.
Mise en Place
Watch How to Make Perfect Beef Plov!
Equipment:
- Large deep skillet with a lid
- Wooden spoon
- colander
Ingredients for Fried Eggplant and Vegetables:
This is a simple eggplant recipe using an abundance of fresh vegetables.
- Eggplants- Choose deep purple aubergines that are smooth and firm. You will need about three small eggplants cut into chunks for even braising.
- Tomatoes—Use four medium-sized diced tomatoes. This fried eggplant recipe is perfect for using up tomatoes from the garden when they are abundant.
- Vegetables—onion, red bell peppers, carrots, and garlic—give this dish an amazingly sweet and pungent flavor.
- Seasonings, such as white distilled vinegar, salt, sugar, and olive oil, enhance the flavor and only cure the dish the longer it is stored.
- Rice- Any white uncooked rice will work. I tend to use Jasmine or short-grain rice. If using whole grains, add a splash of water and cook for longer.
- Hot Red Pepper- Eggplants have a mild flavor, so adding heat gives this dish a more complex and appetizing flavor. Add pickled jalapenos, chop them fresh, or use cayenne powder to taste.
How To Cook Eggplant and Vegetables Recipe:
If you love easy eggplant recipes, this one is super easy to prepare! You will need a large Deep Skillet with a lid to braise this dish and cook all the vegetables.
- Prepare The Vegetables: Chop the eggplant into bite-sized pieces, dice the tomatoes, bell peppers, and onion, crush the garlic, and grate the carrots.
- Wash and rinse the uncooked rice.
- Heat a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the olive oil and all the remaining ingredients (eggplants, tomatoes, onion, garlic, bell peppers, carrots, seasonings, hot pepper, and uncooked rice).
- Saute the mixture until the vegetables release liquid and the mixture gets bubbly. Then, cover the skillet with a lid and reduce the heat to low. Simmer and braise over low heat for 30 minutes.
- Serve this eggplant stew warm out of the skillet or cool and refrigerate as a salad.
Storing This Eggplant Recipe
Leftover sauteed eggplant is best cooled and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It can be spooned over grilled meat, served as a cold salad, or as a warm main dish. When appropriately canned, this recipe is suitable for pressure-canning at 10 pounds for 90 minutes, as seen in this Jarred Eggplant.
What To Serve With Eggplant Stew:
Adding rice to this vegetable stew makes it a great vegetarian main dish! Here are more ways to serve this delicious eggplant recipe!
- Serve as an appetizer to slices of crusty bread. We like this Lithuanian Bread.
- Ladle it over cooked pasta or a bed of rice (you can’t detect the rice in the pasta, so it won’t be odd).
- Need to use up zucchini? Swap out the eggplants with zucchini!
- Fill this vegetable stew with lasagna to make a vegetarian lasagna recipe!
- Have too many leftovers? Add leftovers to a pot of soup to clean out the fridge.
Q&A
Can You Eat Eggplant Skins?
Yes, the skins of younger and smaller eggplant varieties are edible. However, the skins of larger and older eggplants tend to be bitter, so peel those before cooking.
Do You Have To Salt Eggplant?
Salting the eggplants before cooking draws out moisture. Although this is common when frying, I do not recommend it for eggplant stew as the excess liquid is needed to cook the other vegetables and rice. Use younger and smaller eggplants for this eggplant stew for a firmer dish that won’t require salting.
What Does Eggplant Taste Like?
Eggplants have a mild flavor and turn soft and pulpy in texture when cooked. This sauteed eggplant dish uses a variety of vegetables that make the eggplant taste more complex and delicious. This eggplant recipe is a warm salad of cooked eggplant and tomato.
Tips for Making Fried Eggplant and Vegetables at Home:
- Don’t salt the eggplant for this dish; excess liquid is required to cook the rice in this recipe.
- Cut the vegetables to a similar size for even cooking.
- Use a wide and deep skillet with a lid to braise this eggplant dish.
- If using whole grains, increase the cooking time and cook longer.
Fried Eggplant Recipe with Vegetables
Equipment
- 1 12-inch deep skillet
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs eggplants (3 small eggplants, cut into chunks)
- 1 1/2 lbs tomatoes (4 medium-sized, diced)
- 1 onion (diced)
- 1 clove garlic (crushed)
- 2 large red bell peppers (cut into chunks)
- 2 carrots (grated)
- 1 1/2 TBSP white distilled vinegar
- 1 1/2 TBSP salt
- 1 1/2 TBSP granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2/3 cup uncooked white rice (Jasmine rice or short-grain white rice)
- 2 Jalapeno peppers (diced)
Instructions
Prepare The Vegetables: Chop the eggplant into bite-sized pieces, dice the tomatoes, bell peppers, and onion, crush the garlic, and grate the carrots.- Wash and rinse the uncooked rice.
- Heat a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the olive oil and all the remaining ingredients (eggplants, tomatoes, onion, garlic, bell peppers, carrots, seasonings, hot pepper, and uncooked rice). Saute the mixture until the vegetables release liquid and the mixture gets bubbly (about 8 minutes, stirring often).
- Then, cover the skillet with a lid and reduce the heat to low. Simmer and braise over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve this eggplant dish warm out of the skillet, or cool and refrigerate as a salad.
Notes
- This eggplant recipe calls for no additional liquid because the vegetables release liquid naturally during braising.
- Cut the eggplant, peppers, and all the veggies into the same-sized pieces so that they cook evenly.
- Use ground cayenne or two tablespoons of pickled jalapenos if you don't have fresh hot peppers.
- The braised eggplant mixture should darken in color, and the veggies should be very soft.
- Eggplants oxidize after being cut, so it is best to cut them and use them immediately.
Nutrition per serving
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