Egyptian Eggplant Sandwiches

My heritage is extremely mixed, with each grandparent being from a different country. My grandfather on my mother's side is originally from Cairo, Egypt.  He grew up in a small rural village where farming was quite essentially in sustaining the small population.  They didn't have very much money, and every bit of agriculture that was grown was used in one way or another.

My grandfather played a massive role in my childhood.  He is stern and strict, yet caring and aware. When I was younger, every Friday he would make eggplant sandwiches. He took pride in making them for us because to him, this was his heritage; this was his home.  My brother and I would talk with him while he prepared the ingredients for the dish, and every so often he would feed a cucumber or tomato stem to us as he cut the veggies.

I appreciate this recipe because it's one that goes beyond my grandfather.  It's one even my great grandparents used to make.  It represents a true appreciation for food; one that we may never understand.  To the people of their village, food meant family. Food meant love. Food meant sustenance. Food meant life. In in that sense, their gratitude for for food was much deeper than ours is today.

The eggplant sandwiches that I make are completely vegetarian, but so densely packed with the natural flavors of the veggies, you wouldn't ever miss the meat.  My mom adopted this recipe as well, and put her own spin on these sandwiches by pairing them with a parsley hummus (I will add a recipe for this at some point).  A smear of hummus inside the sandwich gives it a nice lemony touch. 

It's so important to use fresh produce only in this recipe.  The vegetables are standing on their own without any seasoning (besides salt), so if they're not fresh, you or your audience may notice. Pick out firmer veggies when you shop to make sure they will last until you get around to making this. So grab your cutting board and get ready to make these delicious vegetarian eggplant sandwiches from Egypt.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: ~460 per serving (2 sandwiches)

Ingredients:

1 extra large eggplant (or 2 small ones)

4 mini cucumbers, sliced

3 vine ripened tomatoes, sliced

1 small red onion, sliced

1/2 a pound of feta cheese

4 pita breads, cut in half

salt

4 tbsp of canola oil

Instructions:

1. Cut eggplant into 1/4 slices. Lay flat on cutting board and heavily salt one side. Leave for 10 minutes.*  Then dry the eggplant with a paper towel, flip over and repeat on the other side.

2. While you wait for your eggplant to prep, slice your cucumbers, red onion, and tomatoes onto a plate.

3. When your eggplant has been prepped an dried, heat a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of oil on medium-high heat. Once hot, carefully place the eggplant flat into the pan. Fry on each side for 2 minutes, or until brown, and then place on top of a paper towel. Repeat until all your eggplant has been cooked.

4. Stack your pitas on top of each other and heat in the microwave for 10-20 seconds.  Then cut the whole stack in half.

5. Take one pita bread half and carefully open it up. Place in 2-3 slices of eggplant, tomato, cucumber, red onion, and some feta cheese. Repeat until all the sandwiches are made (or serve family style!).

 

*Heavily salting the eggplant in the step is meant to help draw the water out of it and removes a lot of the bitter taste.