Eggplant caviar has become the hallmark of the "Soviet" table, after the clerk of the Ambassadorial Prikaz Feofan said "overseas caviar." We recall the post-Soviet times and prepare a well-known and favorite eggplant appetizer.
Recipe content:
- Basic principles of cooking eggplant caviar
- Ingredients
- Step by step cooking
- Video recipe
Why is eggplant caviar called "overseas"? Actually, because the eggplant comes from Southeast Asia or India, where it will still melt in the wild. Therefore, the term "overseas" is not so surprising. Moreover, eggplant was domesticated about 15 centuries ago, and in Russia it appeared much later, and even later than those events that are displayed in the comedy film "Ivan Vasilyevich …". Therefore, eggplant caviar in the era of Ivan the Terrible was an overseas curiosity.
Basic principles of cooking eggplant caviar
There are several varieties of eggplant caviar cooking. However, the main products used remain the same. These are eggplants, onions, carrots and tomato paste. Also vegetables are seasoned with pepper, salt and spices. Foods are heat-treated, such as boiling, pan-frying, oven baking or grilling. According to the consistency, caviar can be in two types: vegetables, cut into large pieces or chopped into a puree-like mass.
If caviar is harvested for the winter for future use, then its production should be carried out without delay and in excellent sanitary conditions. Since chopped vegetables are a favorable environment for the development of microorganisms. It is also impossible for the caviar to be cooled before packing, since it has a thick consistency, which makes it difficult to warm up during sterilization.
- Caloric content per 100 g - 90 kcal.
- Servings - 500 ml
- Cooking time - 1 hour
Ingredients:
- Eggplant - 2 pcs.
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Onions - 1 pc.
- Tomatoes - 2 pcs.
- Red sweet bell pepper - 1 pc.
- Tomato paste - 2 tablespoons
- Ground paprika - 1 tsp
- Refined vegetable oil - for frying
- Salt to taste
- Ground black pepper - to taste
Cooking eggplant caviar
1. Wash the eggplants, pat dry with a paper towel, cut off the tail and cut in half. Place them on a baking sheet, season with salt and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. If you wish, you can first remove bitterness from the eggplant if you feel it and it interferes with the perception of the dish. However, if you use young fruits, there is no bitterness in them. You can remove the bitterness as follows. Sprinkle the eggplant cuts with salt and leave to lie for 20 minutes, when there are droplets on the surface, they must be washed off. Then continue to cook according to the recipe.
2. When the eggplants are cooked, remove them from the oven, cool and remove the skins. Although this can be done at will.
3. Peel and dice the carrots.
4. Peel and chop the onions in half rings.
5. Wash the tomatoes and cut into 4 pieces.
6. Peel the bell pepper from seeds, cut off the tail, and cut the pulp into strips.
7. Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil and send all vegetables to fry. Cook for about 10 minutes, add tomato paste and stir.
8. Then add ground paprika, salt and black pepper. Pour in a lot of water, cover the pan and simmer the vegetables over low heat for about 30 minutes.
9. Try vegetables. If they are soft, then the caviar is ready. It can be left as it is, or you can give it a "gruel" consistency. To do this, put the food in a bowl and grind it with a blender. Ready caviar can be rolled into sterilized jars. If you cooked it for dinner, then send the caviar to the refrigerator for cooling, since caviar is used only in a cool form.
See also a video recipe on how to cook eggplant caviar.
