As I have said before, Khoresh Bademjun is pretty much the most popular meal in my household. The only thing that keeps me from making it more often is all the oil used in frying the eggplant. So, when I made the Eggplant and Tomato Stew with Pomegranate Molasses and prepared the eggplant by roasting rather than frying, I was very happy when the eggplant came out tasting just as good as it did fried. I love fried eggplant, so this was quite a surprise to me. A pleasant one.
So it was time to try the oven roasted approach to Khoresh Bademjun.
The big test was my husband. He loves his Khoresh Bademjun. How would he like my new, healthier version?
I am quite pleased to report that he said it tasted pretty much the same and that this approach was fine with him. Now we will get all the yummy goodness of eggplant without the oil. Strike one up for healthy eating!!
Khoresh Bademjun (Persian Eggplant Stew) – Revisited Without All the Oil
2 medium eggplants, or the equivalent amount of small eggplants Kosher Salt
2 Tbsp Canola Oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lb chicken or beef, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 onion chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 can diced tomatoes or, as I used today, the equivalent amount of fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped, about 2 large (from the garden)
1/2 cup hot water
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Peel and dice the eggplant. Place on the baking sheet and drizzle with 1 Tbsp oil. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.
Bake for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Remove from oven.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the other 1 Tbsp oil. Add the chicken or beef and onions. Brown on all sides – do not overcook. After the meat is browned add turmeric and salt. Mix to combine.
Add a layer of tomatoes.
Add the water then cover with a layer of eggplants, covering the tomatoes and meat as completely as possible.
Cover and cook over very low heat for about 2 hours, check after 1 hour to see if more water is needed.
Serve with rice and pickled vegetables. Enjoy!
Serves 4.
Andrea's Garden Cooking 
Thank you! Is there a slow cooker version that you could suggest??
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I have not seen any. I think you could do the final cooking in a crock pot, but you would still need to do the roasting or frying of the eggplant outside the crock pot, so I don’t think using ht crock pot would end up saving much is any work. Which is a sad thing. If I can figure out a way to do it, I will definitely post it.
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