Eggplant with Green Lentils (Mualla/Yeşil Mercimekli Patlıcan)

Eggplant is one of my favorite summer vegetables. I don’t seem to be cooking with it as much now since my kids don’t love it. One day, I really craved eggplants so I decided to make something saucy with eggplants. This recipe is traditionally made in Hatay/Antakya (Antioch) region and it is just incredibly delicious. The pomegranate molasses gives it such a good kick. It is particularly delicious with flat bread, but I served it with rice, instead of bread.

2 large eggplants

3 large tomatoes (peeled and diced)

3-4 green peppers (cut in fourths and sliced)

1 large onion (cut in fourths and sliced)

4 cloves garlic (chopped)

1 cup green lentils

1 tbsp red pepper paste

2 tsp crushed red peppers

1 tsp dried mint

1 tsp sumac

2 tsp salt

¼ cup pomegranate molasses

½ tsp thyme

¾ cup olive oil

Peel the eggplants in stripes. Cut each eggplant in eights and slice diagonally. 

Fill a large pot with cold water and add salt. Place the sliced eggplants in salty water and let sit for an hour.

Wash the lentils and place in a small pot. Add two cups of water and boil for 35-40 minutes or until the lentils absorb all the water and are soft.

In a large bowl, combine the cooked lentils, green peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, sumac, mint, crushed red pepper, red pepper paste, thyme and pomegranate molasses. 

Drain the eggplants and set aside. In the bottom of a large pot place half the lentil mixture. 

Place the eggplant slices on top of the mixture and pour the rest of the lentil mixture on the top. Drizzle with olive oil.

 

Cook on stove top for 15 minutes on high heat and then turn down the heat and cook for 1 hour. Enjoy with rice.