Russian Eggplant Spread | Lapa Eats

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Russian Eggplant Spread

2020-05-20

“Russian eggplant spread” is kind of a description I’m using here to really describe what this dish actually is. I know it as “baklazhannaya ikra”, or its direct translation would be “eggplant caviar”, but neither of those are super descriptive or particularly illuminating to the average reader.

Essentially, this dish is a very common appetizer made of pretty common vegetables like eggplant, bell peppers, onion, carrot, etc. In fact, it’s so common that I can’t remember one family gathering without it!

I never used to particularly like eggplant ikra, but was kind of forced to eat it by my grandparents when I would come over. You basically can’t refuse food at your relatives’ houses. Also, my family would sometimes buy this stuff in a jar from the Russian grocery store, and I was not super fond of that. Eventually, I grew to like this eggplant spread, especially when my dad would make it.

This recipe is pretty much my dad’s recipe and I make and eat this all the time now! It’s such a great snack. But nothing beats eating this eggplant spread with some warm black bread…

So give it a try! It’s super delicious, easy to make, and chances are you already have all the ingredients readily available. Need I say more?

Serving Size: 4 servings

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

2 large eggplants
5 medium tomatoes
1 onion, roughly chopped
5 garlic cloves, grated
1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped
4 tablespoons shredded carrot
4 tablespoons lemon juice
3 teaspoons sugar
Olive oil, for frying
Sea salt, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Peel the eggplant in a striped pattern lengthwise. Don’t remove all of the skin -- this will balance the color and texture of the eggplant spread.
2. Cut the eggplant into 1 inch cubes and salt to taste. Set aside for 5 minutes to allow the salt to release moisture from the eggplant.
3. Meanwhile, peel the tomatoes -- to make this easier, poke the tomatoes with a knife to ventilate and drop them into a pot of boiling water. After about a minute, these slits will start to split a little. Remove the tomatoes from the water and peel the tomato skin off with a paring knife.
4. Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add the onions and brown slightly, about 5 minutes.
5. Squeeze the eggplants of excess water and add them to the frying pan. Cook them until they are slightly browned and then cover and reduce the heat to soften them.
6. After about 5 minutes, add the bell pepper and grated carrot and mix together. If it appears as though the vegetables are burning, add some water to produce more steam. Then replace the lid.
7. Chop the tomatoes as finely as possible. Season them with the sugar and salt, to taste. Add these to the pan and mix all the vegetables together, replacing the lid after.
8. Cook everything for about 30 minutes until the vegetables are soft and resemble a spread.
9. Remove the lid and keep cooking until the excess water is evaporated, about another 10 minutes.
10. Add the grated garlic and turn off the heat. Mix everything together. You may have to adjust the salt/sugar/lemon juice to balance out the saltiness and acidity levels to your liking.
11. Cool completely before serving. This eggplant spread can be made up to a day before, since it usually tastes better the second day after it has cooled in the fridge. Serve with crackers or bread!

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