酸扁豆茄子煲 | Sour Lentil and Aubergine Stew (Rumaniyya)

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酸扁豆茄子煲 x 尋回「家」的感覺

2015年｜我學煮這道菜時，正與女朋友Tascha在耶路撒冷居住。那是我們第一次一齊租地方住。人生路不熟之外，我們可花的錢也不多，所以最後就只能找到一間地下層的住所。我記得那裏很濕很冷，沙發污跡斑斑，飯桌用一塊毫無美感的布蓋著。
有一次，Tascha家人到訪一週，我們都很期待請他們來食晚餐，只不過地方實在很簡陋。但當大家都圍坐一起，桌上放滿食物——茄子、古斯米、中東薄餅、labneh芝士以及沙律——那個色彩繽紛的場景令我十分快樂，頃刻忘掉了四周的環境，在幾個月以來首次感受到家的感覺。

份量： 6

所需時間：45-60分鐘

材料：

棕色小扁豆 100 克（洗淨）
茄子 2-3 個 / 約700克
石榴糖漿 3 湯匙（以我的經驗，可用羅望子醬代替，在亞洲更容易找到！）
檸檬汁 6 湯匙
辣椒片 2 茶匙
麵粉 1 湯匙（如不要麩質的話，可以用任何種類的增稠劑，例如米粉或粟粉）
蒔蘿子 1½ 茶匙（我經常省略這一步）
蒜 5 瓣
孜然 1 茶匙
芝麻醬 2 湯匙（或2湯匙黑芝麻醬和1茶匙麻油代替）
洋蔥 1個（切碎）
鹽
橄欖油
新鮮石榴籽（裝飾看起來會更漂亮，但不是必需的）

步驟：

將小扁豆放入4-5杯水內，煮沸，約25分鐘。
將檸檬汁、羅望子/石榴與麵粉混合，製成糊狀。
用磨缽磨缽將鹽、蒔蘿子、辣椒片搗碎。拌入大蒜，壓碎，放在一旁備用。
將茄子加到煮熟的扁豆中，煮至變軟。
攪拌已壓碎的香料，然後慢慢加入羅望子/石榴混合。再燉幾分鐘，熄火，加入芝麻醬。
用橄欖油中炒洋蔥至金黃色，然後加入燉鍋中。待涼後既成。可配阿拉伯麵包、飯或古斯米一起吃。

【備註】

原版食譜出自以下這本書。我也很推介這書。它跟「聚餐」有不少相似地方。雖然食譜也包括肉類，但裡面有很多素食菜譜，而且全部由來自加沙地帶的女性提供。你或許會覺得這味菜其貌不揚，但保證好味又暖胃！

食譜來源：https://www.amazon.com/Gaza-Kitchen-Palestinian-Culinary-Journey/dp/1935982230

你做過這道菜嗎？在下面留言，分享你的回憶吧！

Sour Lentil and Aubergine Stew (Rumaniyya) x A Taste of Home

2015 | I learned to cook this dish when I was living in Jerusalem with my girlfriend, Tascha. It was the first time we rented a house together, and, being new to the city and with a very low disposable income, we ended up in a pretty miserable basement flat. I remember it being very cold and damp, with a stained sofa and a plastic table covered in an ugly waxed tablecloth.
Tascha’s family came to visit for a week, and we were excited to have them over for dinner but also wished we had a better place to invite them to. But once everyone was sitting around the table and the meal was served - the aubergines, served with cous cous and flatbread, labaneh and salad - the scene was so colourful and happy that I stopped noticing the surroundings and felt, perhaps for the first time in months, at home.

Serves: 6

Total cooking time: 30-45 mins

Ingredients:

100g of brown lentils, rinsed
2-3 aubergines (around 700g)
3 tbsp pomegranate molasses (which, in my experience, can be substituted for tamarind paste - much easier to find in Asia!)
6 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp chilli flakes
1 tbsp flour (for gluten free can be any sort of thickener, including e.g. rice flour or corn starch)
1 ½ tsp dill seed (I have often had to skip them)
5 cloves garlic
1 tsp cumin
2 tbsp tahini (can replace with 2 tbsp sesame paste and 1 tsp sesame oil)
1 onion, finely chopped
Salt
Olive oil
Fresh pomegranate seeds to garnish (looks great but not essential)

Steps:

Boil the lentils in 4-5 cups of water for approximately 25 minutes.
Mix the lemon juice and tamarind/pomegranate with the flour, making a paste.
Crush the salt, dill seed, dried chilli with a pestle, then add the garlic, mash and set aside.
Add the aubergines to the cooked lentils and leave simmering until soft.
Stir in the crushed spices and slowly incorporate the tamarind/pomegranate mixture. Stew for a few more minutes, then take off the stove and add the tahini.
Fry the chopped onions in olive oil, until golden, then add to the stew. Leave to cool, then serve with Arabic bread, rice or couscous.

Contributor’s Note:

The original recipe is from the book below, which, incidentally, I really recommend. It seems quite in line with the project – it isn’t vegetarian but has many vegetarian recipes and are all shared by women from Gaza). The stew doesn’t look very attractive, but it is very tasty and comforting, I promise!

Recipe source: https://www.amazon.com/Gaza-Kitchen-Palestinian-Culinary-Journey/dp/1935982230

Did you make this dish? Share your memory about it in the comment box below!