I am in Sweden visiting my daughter and her family. We were invited to their Persian friends house for a cookout challenge – her khoresh bademjun v. my khoresh bademjun. Unfortunately, on the day of the challenge, their family was sick, so it was cancelled. Since I had already roasted 6 medium eggplants, it would be khoresh bademjun for all their housemates (but not cookout challenge).

I always find it very odd to cook here, in their kitchen. Their oven works very differently than mine, so roasting the eggplants correctly was a challenge. Their cooktop is also different, but I have been finding my way to the right settings there. Then, of course, there is making the rice. I have gotten so spoiled by my rice cooker that I get very nervous making Persian rice in a pot.

I have had some delicious food since I have been here. Her housemate from India found out that I love biryani, and made chicken biryani for me…yum! I also had a toscabullar from a bakery in town – filled with sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds and hazelnuts – out of this world!

Back to the bademjun, choosing a protein is always interesting. The people we were going to meet were vegetarian, so we had picked some plant-based chicken pieces. But when it turned into cooking for the house, I needed more, so I also added some plant based beef grounds. And, just to be sure there was enough substance, I added a lot of chopped mushrooms.

So, the big question was what dish to cook it in, was there a large enough pan for all of it, or should I divide it in 2? Once I started cooking the onions and mushrooms, I realized I definitely wanted 2 large skillets. The problem then was fitting both of those on the stovetop with the rice pot – oy!

For being as uncomfortable as I was cooking this, and scaling it up for so many people, it turned out tasty as it usually does. I also made some mast-o khiar (yogurt and cucumber) and we had salad Shirazi made by a Persian friend of theirs, and some Indian pickles to serve as our torshi.

Khoresh Bademjun (Persian Eggplant Stew) Vegetarian Version for 12 people

6 medium eggplants

3 Tbsp canola oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

800g plant-based chicken and/or beef pieces

4 medium onions, chopped

6-8 very large mushrooms, chopped

2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp kosher salt

4 cans diced tomatoes

2-3 cups hot water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 205C (400F). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, drizzle with 1 Tbsp oil.

Peel and slice the eggplant lengthwise, about 1/2” thick.  Place on the baking sheet and drizzle with 1 Tbsp oil.  Bake for 40 – 60 minutes, turning every 15 minutes until browned. Remove from oven.

In a large skillet, heat the other 1 Tbsp oil. Add the “chicken” pieces and onions and cook for about 5 minutes.

Add a layer of tomatoes. Add the water then cover with a layer of eggplants, covering the tomatoes and “chicken” mixture 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 12.