Arabic recipesMain dishes
Fattet Batenjan: Syrian Layered Crispy Eggplant & Yogurt-Tahini Fatteh
Fattet Batenjan is a showstopping Damascene and Lebanese family platter built on temperature and texture contrast: crunchy toasted flatbread, caramelized eggplant cubes and tangy pomegranate-tomato spiced meat blanketed in cool garlicky yogurt-tahini sauce and sizzling ghee-toasted pine nuts.
Also known as:Lebanese & Syrian eggplant fatteh (Fattet betenjan)Layered roasted eggplant, pita chips & tahini yogurtMiddle Eastern crispy eggplant fatteh with pomegranate molasses
Servings4
Prep time25 min
Cook time25 min
Ingredients
Add ingredients to cart- 3 medium eggplants cut into 2 cm cubes, lightly salted for 15 minutes and patted dry
- 2 Arabic flatbreads scissored into bite-sized squares and baked crisp
- Spiced tomato layer: 300 g ground beef or lamb + 1 diced onion + 1 tsp seven-spice + 2 tbsp tomato paste in 250 ml water + 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- Yogurt-tahini blanket: 500 g plain yogurt + 3 tbsp sesame tahini + juice of 1/2 lemon + 1 mashed garlic clove + salt
- Sizzling finish: 1 tbsp clarified butter ghee + 35 g pine nuts + 1/2 tsp sumac & parsley
Preparation Steps
- 1Roast the oiled eggplant cubes on a hot sheet pan at 220 °C for about 22 minutes until deeply golden (or pan-fry), and toast the flatbread squares until crisp.
- 2Brown the onion and ground meat with seven-spice and salt, stir in dissolved tomato paste and pomegranate molasses, and simmer 10 minutes into a glossy sauce.
- 3Whisk yogurt, tahini, lemon juice, mashed garlic and salt until thick and velvety.
- 4Right before serving, scatter most of the crispy bread in a wide shallow bowl and top with warm eggplant cubes and the hot pomegranate-tomato meat sauce.
- 5Pour the cool yogurt-tahini layer across the top, toast the pine nuts in sizzling ghee until golden, and spoon immediately over the dish with sumac, parsley and reserved bread chips.
