Borani Banjan (Afghan Layered Eggplant Dish)

Borani Banjan (Afghan Layered Eggplant Dish)

Borani Banjan is a delicious dish from Afghanistan made with layers of roasted eggplants, tomato sliced and cooked in delicious tomato sauce. It is then topped with garlicky Greek yogurt for a decadent finish.

Author: Pavani

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Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 30

Total Time: 1

Course: Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine: Afghan, asian

Servings: Servings

Ingredients

2 Medium Chinese Eggplant or 4 Medium Italian Eggplants
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
To taste Salt & Pepper
3 Medium Tomatoes, Sliced
1 cup Cilantro, finely chopped
For garnish Dried Mint

For Tomato Sauce:

2 tablespoons Olive oil
4 Garlic cloves, finely minced
3 tablespoons Tomato paste
½ teaspoon Turmeric
1 teaspoon Curry powder
1 teaspoon Paprika powder
1½ cups Vegetable Broth
To taste Salt & Pepper

For Garlic Yogurt:

1 cup Thick Yogurt, Greek Yogurt works great
1 Garlic clove, finely minced
To taste Salt & Pepper

Instructions

Roast/ Broil Eggplant:

Set the oven to broil.
Cut eggplant into ½" thick slices on a bias. Arrange the eggplant slices on 2 baking sheets, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Broil for 3~5 minutes or until lightly browned. Flip and repeat for another 1~2 minutes or until soft and golden brown. Set aside.
Turn the oven down to 375°F.
2 Medium Chinese Eggplant or 4 Medium Italian Eggplants, 1 tablespoon Olive Oil, To taste Salt & Pepper

Make Tomato Sauce:

Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until lightly browned and fragrant. Make sure to not burn the garlic.
2 tablespoons Olive oil, 4 Garlic cloves, finely minced
Add tomato paste, turmeric, curry powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Mix well and cook for 1~2 minutes.
3 tablespoons Tomato paste, ½ teaspoon Turmeric, 1 teaspoon Curry powder, 1 teaspoon Paprika powder, To taste Salt & Pepper
Add the vegetable broth and bring the mixture to a boil on high heat. Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
1½ cups Vegetable Broth

Layer to make Borani Banjan:

Pour ⅓ of the tomato sauce in a 9"x13" baking pan or into individual baking dishes and spread it across the bottom.
Arrange ⅓ of the eggplant slices on top of the sauce. Sprinkle half of the cilantro over the eggplants and then layer half of the tomato slices evenly over the eggplant.
3 Medium Tomatoes, Sliced, 1 cup Cilantro, finely chopped
Pour on the other ⅓ of the sauce. Repeat with ⅓ of the eggplant, remaining cilantro and tomato slices. Finish the dish with the remaining eggplant, drizzling the last ⅓ of the sauce making sure to cover all the veggies.
Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for about 20~30 minutes or until the mixture is bubbly; then remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool slightly before serving. Top with garlic yogurt just before serving.

Make the garlic yogurt:

Mix minced garlic in the yogurt, season with salt & pepper.
1 cup Thick Yogurt, Greek Yogurt works great, 1 Garlic clove, finely minced, To taste Salt & Pepper
Pour the garlic yogurt over the baked eggplant and sprinkle with lot of dried mint. Serve with pita or naan bread.
For garnish Dried Mint

Video

Notes

Best eggplants to use in the recipe are the long Chinese eggplant. Make sure to choose medium size ones for the best texture. Medium size Italian eggplants will also work great.
Instead of broiling the eggplant, you can pan fry them in oil until golden and soft.
Substitute tomato paste in the sauce with 2 medium ripe chopped tomatoes.
You can also simmer the cooked eggplant slices in the tomato sauce for 20~30 minutes until silky and delicious.
Alternately, skip the baking part and serve Borani Banjan by layering the roasted eggplant on the serving plate. Top with tomato sauce and yogurt sauce.
Store leftover baingan borani in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat before serving.

Nutrition

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