How to Make Eggplant Makdous

Ingredients

• 10 kg small eggplants, suitable for making makdous
• 1 kg prepared pepper molasses
• 10 cloves garlic
• 1/2 kg walnuts
• 1/2 kg peanuts (optional)
• Note: You can use 1 kg walnuts
• Coarse salt, about 3 cups or as needed
• Vegetable oil

Method

1. Trim the eggplants, removing the stems and green tops, then wash them.
2. Place the eggplants in a large pot for boiling, cover them with a large piece of cloth spread over the top of the eggplants in the pot, then place a tray on top of the cloth and a heavy weight on top of the tray.
3. After that, cover the eggplants in the pot with cold water and wait until they come to a boil.
4. After boiling, leave them for 10 minutes over high heat so that the inside stays white.
   Timers: 10 min
5. Remove them from the boiling water and place them directly under cold water; leave them there for about 10 minutes.
   Timers: 10 min
6. Then drain the eggplants and begin opening each one slightly from the side, making sure not to open them from the top, only from the middle.
7. Rub the inside of the eggplants with a small handful of salt. The eggplants must be salted well because this helps preserve them.
8. Place the eggplants in a large colander (or anything that allows water to drain, such as a plastic vegetable crate), then place a tray on top and a heavy weight on top of that, such as a gas cylinder or a concrete block, so all the water drains out.
9. Prepare the filling by mixing the pepper molasses and crushed garlic with the chopped walnuts or peanuts.
10. After about a day of pressing the eggplants under weight, once all the water has drained out, stuff them and arrange the eggplants in glass jars.
11. Cover the eggplants in the jars with oil, leaving a small empty space at the top to allow the oil room to expand and rise (it usually bubbles up the next day and rises to the top).
12. Before sealing the jars the next day, make sure all the eggplants are still covered with oil if the jars are low after the oil rises.
13. Seal the jars tightly and keep them for several days or a week before eating.
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