Imam Baldi

An Imam is a Persian sufi priest, and 'imam baldi' means 'the imam fainted'. Some say this was because of the high cost of this recipe (was eggplant a delicacy in ancient Persia?), while others say it was because of its overwhelmingly delectable flavour.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 1 1/2 hours

Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant
• 2 onions
• 3-4 tomatoes
• sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 tablespoons water

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180�C (350�F).

• Slice the eggplant and tomato thickly (eg 1 cm / 1/2 inch), and the onions to about half that thickness.

• In a deep casserole dish, first put the water (to prevent anything sticking to the dish), then a layer of eggplant slices, sprinkling sparingly with salt, and liberally with black pepper. On top of this put a layer of sliced onion and then a layer of tomato. Continue putting in layers like this until all ingredients are used up, including the bay leaves as you go.

• Put a lid on the casserole dish and cook in the oven until the onion is soft - one and a half to two hours.

Make sure you have some fresh bread to dip in the delicious gravy you will find at the botton of the dish.

Variations

• Layers of mushrooms go well in this dish.

• Traditionally this dish is sprinkled with a small amount of fresh, virgin, cold-pressed olive oil before serving, to add flavour. (Of course it is no longer fat-free if you do this!)

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