Mirza Ghasemi

Ingredients

• 5eggplantmedium, about 850 g in total; roasted whole, peeled and chopped
• 3tomatopeeled and grated or very finely chopped
• 3Eggsset in the pan and mixed in
• 5 clovesgarlicgrated or crushed, sautéed only briefly
• 3 tbspoilneutral oil or olive oil; for frying
• 1 tspturmericbriefly toasted with the garlic
• ½ tspsaltadjust to taste
• ½ tspblack pepperfreshly ground
• 1 tbsptomato pastefor colour and flavour, well toasted (optional)
• 1onionchopped, fried golden before adding the garlic (optional)

Method

1. Pierce or slit the eggplants all over and roast them whole over an open flame or charcoal. Keep turning them until the skin is blackened and the inside is completely soft.
2. Cover the roasted eggplants or seal them in a bag and let them steam. Then remove the skin and stem ends, and chop the flesh with a knife or mash it with a potato masher.
3. Peel the tomatoes and grate them or chop them very finely.
4. Heat the oil in a frying pan. If you are using the onion, fry it until golden first. Add the garlic and sauté it only briefly, without letting it take on any colour.
5. Add the turmeric and black pepper and toast them for a moment. If you are using tomato paste, add it now and let it toast well.
6. Add the tomatoes and eggplant to the pan, and season with salt and pepper. Cook everything over gentle heat until the liquid has evaporated and the oil separates at the edges.
7. Push the mixture to one side or make a few small wells, crack in the eggs and let them set. Then stir them thoroughly through.
8. Let the mirza ghasemi rest for a few minutes, taste for salt and pepper, and serve with bread or kateh rice and fresh herbs.

Tips and variations

Without an open flame, you can roast the eggplants in the oven at 200 °C for 45 to 60 minutes, though the characteristic smokiness will be missing. Chopping the flesh with a knife gives the more traditional texture; mashing makes it smoother. You can cook the tomatoes down first and then add the eggplant, or fry the eggplant first and add the tomatoes afterwards. The eggs can also be cracked onto the mixture without stirring, left to set under a lid, and only then broken up and folded in. Some cooks add onion, lemon juice and tomato paste, and finish with a fried egg or a softly cooked egg on top. To serve, drizzle with a little olive oil, scatter over chopped walnuts and spring onions, and set pickled garlic and zeytun parvardeh alongside.