Mediterranean Eggplant stuffed with Fresh Tomato and Onion
Melitzanes Imam… This dish is so good and rich you won’t believe it’s just vegetables (and some feta). The eggplant and onions caramelize as they are cooked and along with tomato and olive oil this dish comes beautifully together.
Now, this dish is known to be Turkish, but it is very popular in Greece as well, as in other areas of the Mediterranean and the Balkans. It is considered a lathero (a category of Greek dishes that are usually vegetarian and cooked in olive oil and tomato) and tastes better the next day.
The original version calls for frying the eggplant. In this recipe I baked the eggplant, it does make it a little lighter on the stomach.
This dish is better when you use narrow longish eggplants, but using the regular eggplant can work, but you may need to cut the eggplant in half instead of using it whole if it is too wide.
Nutritionally, what can I say? We have the eggplant which is a great source of soluble fiber, the kind that lowers cholesterol and controls your blood sugar levels. Eggplant is also rich in heart protective antioxidants.
Along with the onion, tomato and olive oil, once again we have a super-dish full of fiber, good fats and antioxidants and it’s vegan. Of course being Greek we eat it with feta, but even without it, it is delicious.
There are several ways to make this dish, some recipes cook everything together, others cook it on the stovetop, I chose the roasting method and cooking the onions first.
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Mediterranean Eggplant stuffed with Fresh Tomato and Onion
Ingredients
- 6 medium long eggplant
- 1/3 cup olive for frying plus more for drizzling
- 6 onions finely chopped
- 6 garlic cloves finely chopped
- ½ cup chopped parsley
- 3 large tomatoes chopped
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Salt
- Pepper
- 3 ounces crumbled feta
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius).
- Wash the eggplant. Remove most of the stem. Peel parts of the eggplant lengthwise all around so that you have a striped eggplant. Make 3 deep slits lengthwise about an inch apart.
- Place eggplant in a pan, drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for about 1 hour.
- In the meantime start on the onion mixture. Sauté the chopped onion in a pan with 1/3 cup olive oil until soft. Add the chopped garlic, tomato, parsley and sugar and ½ cup water and simmer for about 15-20 minutes minutes. Add additional water if needed. When the mixture is ready it should not be watery.
- Once the eggplant is ready, open one of slits and stuff with the onion mixture. Do this with all the eggplant and place in the pan. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with feta. Add a bit of water at the base of the pan as needed, roast for about 40-45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Let it cool for 10 minutes.
How many cups of chopped onion should you have? 4 onions doesn’t really help as onions can vary in size quite alot.
I just stumbled upon your site and enjoyed reading your beautiful recipes. My mouth is watering and I’m ready to try some. Thank you!
This is beautiful. Such great flavors!
http://www.chefmimiblog.com
I just found your site while looking for an eggplant recipe. This is delicious! It takes some time, but it’s worth it.
I liked it so much, I subscribed!
Hello! I was wondering how many this serves. Is it six people, one eggplant per person?
Also would you happen to know the average weight of the eggplants that you use? I’m assuming maybe one big eggplant would equal two of these, but I could be way off.
Thanks!
Hi Chris, About 2 eggplant per person. Just added the servings to the recipe. Yes, if you had bigger-wider eggplants you could serve one. Although I find smaller eggplant cook better in this dish.
What are the nutritional facts. And what is a serving?
Elena, I wanted to thank you for these wonderful recipes. I was born in Greece and was lucky enough to have both my yiayiathes (grandmothers) live with us. My maternal yiayia was an amazing cook, even though she could not read or write (she was the oldest of 24 children so she helped her mother with all her siblings and had no time for school). All your recipes are almost identical to the ones my yiayia taught me! Thank you for sharing the Greek Diet with the world! Kali Orexi!!! Yia sta heria sou! Much love, Fay Sideris Vespa
Thank you Fay! How wonderful to have grown up with your yiayiades! They are so wise.
I have some light skinned aubergines which are average sized, not too fat like the black ones. If you cut them in half, do you do this at the roasting stage or after they come out of the oven? Thanks for all your recipes, I have made so many here in Greece and they always work! Best…..
If they are smaller ones, than you do not need to cut them in half, just cut the slits. If you do cut them in half, this should be done before you roast them (in step 2).
I used a little grated carrot for sweetness instead of the sugar. Really great recipe!
What a great dish! We devoured it tonight with crispy, roasted okra on the side. Cooking time was short after work so I microwaved the eggplant for 15 minutes and then roasted for 30. Worked out great. Important to cook the filling to a thick consistency. If tomatoes are juicy, add water sparingly. An incredibly rich and satisfying vefetarian dish results! Thank you Elana.
Thanks for sharing Dana!
I always love reading your recipes because they remind me of my honeymoon when my husband and I traveled to Greece and fell IN LOVE with all of the traditional food! While we can find a fair amount of tasty Greek food in Chicago, your blog continues to teach about dishes I am less familiar with and inspires me to cook them in my own kitchen! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Amari!
Great use of eggplant. I think maybe the flavor of the vegetables depends on how it is produced, and when it is picked. I have had eggplant and zucchini off of a garden plant, or straight from the farmer’s stand where it still had the smell of the plant on it. The taste of these was out of this world! I love the way you decreased the fat in this dish by baking it. I’ll be passing this along to my readers with gusto!
Thanks Jason!and thank you for sharing.
It’s been my experience that in countries which don’t get a lot of sunlight, the vegetables and fruits are not nearly as tasty.
I have lived in Greece and Lebanon (I’m half Greek, half Lebanese) and the vegetables and fruits here are just much better tasting than those of other countries (not Mediterranean) i have been to.
I was wondering your thoughts on the subject.
Hi Cynthia, Yes, there are many factors including the soil and the water as well as the season.
Love your recipes
Thanks Karen!