Eggplant

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In Episode #45, co-hosts Beata and Bita talk about a single ingredient in Persian cuisine, eggplant.  Eggplant is translated as “bademjoon” in Farsi.  It is also sometimes referred to as “bademjan”.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Persian dishes with eggplant</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Smoky eggplant dips or spreads such as Kashk Bademjoon/bademjan (kashk is a yogurt derivative or whey with a salty umami flavor), Mirza Ghassemi, and Meleh Ghormeh (a regional specialty discussed in</span> <a href= "https://modernpersianfood.com/episode-31-cultural-spotlight-caspian-sea-region/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">episode #31 with special guest Omid, The Caspian Chef</span></a><span style= "font-weight: 400;">)</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Khoresh (Persian stew) Khoresh Bademjoon/Bademjan (has beef or lamb traditionally and the tart unripe grapes called “ghoreh” in Farsi) and Ghemeh Bademjoon/Bademjan (with small cuts of meat); both served over rice</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Koo koo bademjoon/bademjan</span></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Strategies for cooking eggplant for Persian dishes</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Oven baking or broiling - in pieces or whole (whole baking works well with smaller varieties of eggplant such as the Japanese eggplant)</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Sliced and sauteed</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Importance of cooking all the way through - eggplant texture should be very wrinkly and the eggplant should fall or drop which shows its been cooked through</span></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><strong>Ask the Beats!</strong></p> <p><span style="font-