Eggplant Stew

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Eggplant Stew.jpg

This greek style bean stew is the vegan alternative to a lamb shanks casserole or something similar. It’s hearty and warming, full of vegetable goodness and fibre, and super tasty. It’s a powerful recipe for feeding your microbiome all the goodness it needs to thrive.

The original recipe contained chickpeas, which can be irritating to an inflamed gut, so I’ve replaced the chickpeas with cannellini beans. You could also use butter beans, or any other beans that take your fancy.

Eggplant Stew

Serves up to 6 people

Ingredients:

  • 500g eggplant, cut into cubes

  • Salt

  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil

  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped

  • 1 green pepper, stem and innards removed, diced

  • 1 carrot, chopped

  • 6 large garlic cloves, minced

  • 2 dry bay leaves

  • 1 to 1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika OR smoked paprika

  • 1 tsp organic ground coriander

  • 1 tsp dry oregano

  • 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric

  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

  • 400g can chopped tomato

  • 400g can of cannellini beans

  • Fresh herbs such as parsley and mint for garnish

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 200 degrees celsius on fan bake.

  2. Place eggplant cubes in a colander over a large bowl or directly over your sink, and sprinkle with salt. Set aside for 20 minutes or so to allow eggplant to “sweat out” any bitterness. Rinse with water and pat dry.

  3. In a large fry pan or cast iron pot, heat 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil over medium-high until shimmering but not smoking. Add onions, peppers, and chopped carrot. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring regularly, then add garlic, bay leaf, spices, and a dash of salt. Cook another minute, stirring until fragrant.

  4. Now add eggplant, chopped tomato and cannellini beans. Stir to combine.

  5. Bring to a rolling boil for 10 minutes or so. Stir often. Remove from stove top, cover and transfer to oven.

  6. Cook in oven for 45 minutes until eggplant is fully cooked through to very tender. (While eggplant is braising, be sure to check once or twice to see if more liquid is needed. If so, remove from oven briefly and stir in about 1/2 cup of water at a time.)

  7. When eggplant is ready, remove from oven and add a generous drizzle of olive oil, garnish with fresh herbs (parsley or mint).