Vegetarian mains
ChefOla Faour
Armenian-Style Oil-Stuffed Fasting Eggplant (Yalanji)
Armenian-style oil-stuffed fasting eggplant, also known as yalanji — a very popular Syrian recipe. We recommend trying it, especially since it’s vegetarian and light.
Oil-stuffed fasting eggplant (yalanji). If you don't know this dish yet, you should try it — it's a very popular Syrian recipe. Here are the details.
Ingredients
Start here, then move straight into the method.
- 1 cup Egyptian rice
- 1 cup water
- 2 large onions
- oil
- 2 tablespoons sweet pepper paste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste or concentrate
- a pinch of black pepper
- hot red or green pepper
- 2 tomatoes
- salt
- pomegranate molasses to taste
- lemon juice to taste
- walnuts
- small eggplant
- Cooking the eggplant
- water
- a little salt
- pomegranate molasses and lemon juice to taste
- Accompanying sauce
- tahini
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- lemon
- water as needed
Method
Follow the cooking sequence without leaving the page.
- Rinse the rice well and leave it in a strainer to drain.
- Finely chop the onions and sauté them in a little oil in a pan until they soften.
- Once the onions are soft, add the sweet pepper paste, tomato paste, and black pepper, and stir.
- Finely chop the hot chili, add it as well, and stir.
- Peel and finely chop the red tomatoes, add them, and cook until the vegetables soften and the sauce thickens.
- Add the rice at this stage with 1 cup of water, salt, pomegranate molasses, and lemon juice. Stir, then reduce the heat, cover the pan or pot, and let the rice cook.
- Allow the yalanji filling to cool before adding the chopped walnuts, then mix.
- Stuff each prepared eggplant (pierced or hollowed as needed) about three-quarters full with the filling.
- Place the stuffed eggplants in a pot on the stove and cover them with water mixed with lemon juice, pomegranate molasses, and salt.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let the fasting eggplants simmer gently until cooked through.
- Sauce
- Mash the garlic and add the tahini, lemon juice, water, and salt. Whisk well and serve it with the stuffed eggplant.
- For more of Georgina's vegetarian recipes, see Syrian tabbouleh
Recipe tags
Vegetarian mainsInternationalVegetarianVeganDairy freeEgg free
Notes and serving ideas
- Syrian tabbouleh
