eggplant, lentil (or meat!), tomato bake
‘Tis the season for eggplant and while I love eggplant, there are times when I struggle to get the texture right. Sometimes it ends up chewy or dry or just…not good. One way that I’ve found to make sure your eggplant is tender enough (and just straight up delicious) is cooking it in sauce (surprise!). This dish does just that, resulting in a delicious, tender eggplant that even my eggplant-suspicious partner loves to eat. It has been on regular rotation throughout the season, and it will likely remain that way until eggplant season is over!
This recipe is my (heavily adapted) take on America’s Test Kitchen’s delicious roasted tomato and eggplant dish. My version is a bit heartier with the addition of the lentils or meat, making it a perfect main course. While ATK’s recipe has a Greek influence, I decided to go a different route adding cumin, paprika, tamari, a decent amount of red chili flakes, and fire roasted tomatoes which makes the sauce rich and packed with umami flavor. The tamari and the carrot here also add a bit of sweetness which balances out the acidity from the tomatoes and the heat from the red chili flakes. This dish is then topped with fresh basil because, in the summertime, why not always use fresh basil, and because it lifts the dish adding some herbal lightness and sweetness.
Below, you’ll see that I have given you two versions of this recipe, one for using lentils and one for using meat. There just some slight differences between the two, based mostly on cooking the meat and the amount of liquid in the dish.
I hope this recipe gives you another way to enjoy eggplant szn!
eggplant, lentil, tomato bake
ingredients
2-3 large eggplant (or 3-4 small), sliced into ¼ inch rounds
Olive oil
Salt
1 small onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 tsp cumin
¾ tsp paprika
½ tsp red pepper flakes
2 14 oz cans lentils, drained and rinsed (or about 3 cups cooked lentils)
1 28 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
1-1.5 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
4-6 oz feta
½ cup basil, thinly sliced (for topping)
instructions
Heat the oven to 400F and prep a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, toss the sliced eggplant with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a large pinch of salt. Mix until the eggplant is evenly coated with oil and salt. Lay each slice of eggplant in a single layer on the baking sheet. Once the oven is up to 400F, add the eggplant and cook for 25-30 minutes, checking halfway and flipping them. The eggplant should be extremely fork tender with some browning. Once done, set aside to cool.
While the eggplant is cooking, start making the lentil tomato sauce. Put an oven safe dish with high sides (such as a Dutch oven, cast iron, or stainless steel pan) over medium-high heat. Once hot, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and carrot and cook until the onion is translucent and the carrot has softened slightly.
Add the garlic and stir to combine, cooking for 1-2 minutes or until very fragrant. Add the cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine and cook for another minute or so until fragrant (but be sure to watch for burning here!).
Add the lentils, the fire roasted tomatoes, and 1.5 tsp of salt. Stir to combine. Bring everything to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer. Let cook for 10 to 15 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down, the ingredients have melded together, and the sauce has thickened (if the sauce is still a bit watery, cook for longer).
Once the sauce is where you want it, add 1 tablespoon of tamari and mix until combined. Taste. If needed, add a half of a tablespoon more of tamari and/or a pinch of salt. Turn off heat.
In a bowl, add 2/3 of the lentil tomato sauce, leaving 1/3 in your oven safe dish. Try to spread the sauce in an even layer.
Next, sprinkle 1/3 of the feta over top of the sauce. Then, top with a single layer of the roasted eggplant.
Add another 1/3 of the sauce on top of the eggplant and spread evenly, trying to cover all of the eggplant. Repeat the process of adding the feta, eggplant, and sauce one more time (you should have three layers of eggplant). Top with the remaining feta.
Put the dish back in a 400F oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes or until the feta starts to brown and the sauce is bubbling up on the sides.
Take the dish out and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. Top with the sliced basil and serve! This dish goes perfectly with some sourdough toasted and drizzled with olive oil.
eggplant, meat, tomato bake
ingredients
2-3 large eggplant (or 3-4 small), sliced into ¼ inch rounds
Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 lb ground beef (or substitute this with ground turkey, chicken, pork, etc.)
1 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt
1 28oz can fire roasted tomatoes
2 tsp tamari or soy sauce
4-6 oz feta
½ cup basil, thinly sliced (for topping)
instructions
Heat the oven to 400F and prep a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, toss the sliced eggplant with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a large pinch of salt. Mix until the eggplant is evenly coated with oil and salt. Lay each slice of eggplant in a single layer on the baking sheet. Once the oven is up to 400F, add the eggplant and cook for 25-30 minutes, checking halfway and flipping them. The eggplant should be extremely fork tender with some browning. Once done, set aside to cool.
While the eggplant is cooking, start making the meat tomato sauce. Put an oven safe dish with high sides (such as a Dutch oven, cast iron, or stainless steel pan) over medium-high heat. Once hot, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and carrot and cook until the onion is translucent and the carrot has softened slightly.
Add the garlic and stir to combine, cooking for 1-2 minutes or until very fragrant. Add the cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine and cook for another minute or so until fragrant (but be sure to watch for burning here!).
Add the meat and cook, breaking up the meat as you go, until most of the pink is gone and it is mostly cooked through.
Add the fire roasted tomatoes and 1.5 tsp of salt. Stir to combine. Bring everything to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer and cover. Let cook for 10 to 15 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down, the ingredients have melded together, and the sauce has thickened. Check periodically to see if you need to add more water to avoid it getting too thick.
Once the sauce is where you want it, add 2 teaspoons of tamari and mix until combined. Taste. If needed, add more tamari and/or salt. Turn off heat.
In a bowl, add 2/3 of the meat tomato sauce, leaving 1/3 in your oven safe dish. Try to spread the sauce in an even layer.
Next, sprinkle 1/3 of the feta over top of the sauce. Then, top with a single layer of the roasted eggplant.
Add another 1/3 of the sauce on top of the eggplant and spread evenly, trying to cover all of the eggplant. Repeat the process of adding the feta, eggplant, and sauce one more time (you should have three layers of eggplant). Top with the remaining feta.
Put the dish back in a 375F oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes or until the feta starts to brown and the sauce is bubbling up on the sides.
Take the dish out and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. Top with the sliced basil and serve! This dish goes perfectly with some sourdough toasted and drizzled with olive oil.
