Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan (Persian Eggplant Stew)
If you enjoy making Persian recipes, you surely know that stews and rice dishes are an important part of the Iranian cuisine. Today’s recipe, Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan (Persian Eggplant Stew), is another classic that you will enjoy and prepare on a regular basis, especially if you like to experiment with new flavors.
Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan is a Persian eggplant stew made with meltingly soft aubergine in a thick and tangy tomato-based sauce, with tender meat pieces and yellow split peas to make it heartier. Serve it with vermicelli rice and enjoy!
An Iconic Persian Stew
Eggplant is an important ingredient in Persian cooking. It can be used in appetizers like kashke bademjan or as a vegetarian main course like Mirza Ghasemi.
What is Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan?
Khoresht Gheymeh Bademjan (Beef Aubergine Stew with Yellow Split Peas) is a traditional Persian stew that can be found at weddings, religious occasions, or even when you are invited over for lunch.
The name Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan ,Lamb Aubergine Stew with Yellow Split Peas, gives you an idea of the dish’s main ingredients. Gheymeh refers to the specific size of the meat used in this stew, whereas Khoresh is a general Persian name for stews, and Bademjan is the Persian word for eggplant. Like most Persian stews, you can enjoy this saffron-flavored stew with Vermicelli Rice or Persian rice.
To create this unique blend of flavors, an acidic ingredient such dried limes (limoo Amani) is added to this Persian eggplant stew.
The khoresh Bademjan recipe has two variations: (Ghooreh Bademjan), which is made with sour grapes, and (Gheymeh Bademjan), which is made with yellow split peas. The recipe presented here is for the split peas version.
A Hearty Stew Which Every One Will Love!
What to Serve With Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan?
You can serve this Persian Eggplant and Split pea Stew with any vegetable sides such as Air Fried Cauliflower with Tahini Sauce or Air Fryer Crispy Broccoli with Parmesan, grains, potatoes, or salads such as Easy Refreshing Pomegranate Salad or Gluten-free Tabouli Salad | Easy keto Tabbouleh.
Khoresh Bademjan also goes great with vermicelli rice.
Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan Ingredients
For this Split Peas Aubergine Stew, you will need:
- Eggplant: Japanese eggplant works well in this recipe. The Japanese eggplant is ideal because it is long and skinny, allowing it to cook all the way through much faster. You can also use Chinese or Italian eggplant.
- Onion: You will need finely chopped onions for this recipe.
- Meat: In this recipe, I use beef stew meat. You can also use cubed lamb or leave out the meat.
- Tomatoes and tomato paste: You will need finely chopped tomatoes and tomato paste for the sauce.
- Yellow split peas: Yellow split peas are an essential ingredient in this stew.
- Dry lemon: Dry lemon, whether brown or black, is a very popular ingredient in Persian Stews. It adds a nice tanginess to the stew.
- Liquid saffron: Saffron is an essential ingredient in the Persian cuisine. You can find it in Middle eastern stores.
- Spices: You will need turmeric powder, black pepper, and cinnamon sticks.
- Oil: You will need olive oil for sautéing the onion, and any type of oil you prefer to fry the eggplants.
- Water or beef broth: Use water or beef broth to cook the stew.
See recipe card for quantities.
Steps to Prep Persian Eggplant Stew
- First, add the olive oil to the instant pot inner pot and turn on the sauté function. When the oil starts to sizzle, add finely chopped onion, sauté for 1-2 minutes until translucent, and add the meat, tomato, tomato paste, and rinsed yellow split peas. Sauté for a couple of minutes; now add pierced dried lemon, liquid saffron, and water.
- Next, close the lid and turn the steam release valve to the sealing position. Turn the warm mode off. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, let’s prepare the eggplants. First, peel and cut eggplants in half lengthwise into thin slices. Next, season eggplants with salt and let them sit for 5-10 minutes. Then, place sliced eggplants on a plate lined with a paper towel to help soak up the moisture.
- After that, add 1/2 cup of oil to a pan over medium heat. Fry sliced eggplants for about 5 minutes on each side until lightly golden and soft. Transfer fried eggplants to a plate lined with a paper towel.
- When the cooking time ends, quickly release the pressure by turning the valve to vent. Now add salt, black pepper, turmeric, and cinnamon stick.
- Finally, add the fried eggplants to the stew and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Place the stew in a serving dish and serve it with white rice.
Substitutions
- You can make a vegan version of this stew by using more split peas. Adjust the amount of water you add based on the number of peas.
- To make this stew vegetarian, omit the meat and replace it with mushrooms.
- Serve this Persian Eggplant Stew over quinoa or couscous for a less traditional twist.
- For this recipe, you can use either beef stew meat ,cubed lamb, or leave out the meat.
- If you don’t have dried lemon, you can use fresh lemon juice.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Both khoresh and kashke bademjan are Persian recipes that use eggplant, but khoresh is a stew and kashke is a dip. Kashke bademjan calls for liquid kashk, which is whey from yogurt, a common Middle Eastern ingredient.
You can definitely freeze this eggplant stew. However, it would be better to freeze the stew and the fried eggplants separately; otherwise the eggplants might fall apart when reheated.
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Khoresh Gheymeh Bademjan Variations
- Spicy: Add chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish.
- Tangy: You can add pomegranate molasses—a thick syrup made from reduced pomegranate juice and sugar— which gives the stew a distinctive tang and depth of flavor.
Equipment
Use the Pressure Cooker/ Instant Pot for faster cooking.
Storage
- Store the Persian Eggplant stew in an air-tight container in the fridge for 3-4 days
- You can also freeze this stew. However, I recommend to freeze the stew and the fried eggplants separately; otherwise the eggplants might fall apart when reheated.
Top Tips
- Serve this stew with Persian white rice or vermicelli rice.
- Not a fan of frying? The eggplants for this recipe can be easily baked. Sprinkle salt generously on both sides of the eggplants and set aside for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, brush the eggplants with olive oil after patting them dry on both sides. Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tender. Then add them to the stew and simmer for a few minutes, as directed in the recipe.
Food safety
- When purchasing meat, choose beef that is bright red in color from the fresh meat case.
- Keep the beef in the fridge until you are ready to use it.
- Wash hands after touching raw meat.
- Don’t leave the stew sitting out at room temperature for a long time, especially in summer.
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
More Stews/ Recipes to Try:
- Sheikh El Mahshi (Middle Eastern Meat-Stuffed Eggplant
- The Best Eggplant Kabob
- Mediterranean Vegan Eggplant Stew
- Fasolia with Meat | Middle Eastern White Bean Stew
- Pressure Cooker Whole Chicken | Instant Pot Whole Chicken And Rice
- 3 Ingredient Vermicelli Rice in Instant Pot
- One Pot Chicken Thighs and Rice Recipe
- Dawood Basha (Baked Kafta and Potatoes)
- Slow Cooked Goat Shoulder
- Hearty Fava Bean Stew
If you’ve tried this recipe or any other recipe on Sourandsweets, don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience with my recipes. Please share it with me on Instagram.
Gheymeh Bademjan (Persian Eggplant Stew)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup light olive oil
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 1 lb. beef stew meat You can also use cubed lamb or leave out the meat.
- 2 tomatoes finely chopped
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 cup yellow split peas rinsed
- 1 dry lemon
- ¼ cup liquid saffron optional
- 3 cups hot water or beef broth
- 2 large eggplants
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 small cinnamon stick
- ½ cup oil for frying eggplants
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to the instant pot inner pot and turn on the saute function. When the oil starts to sizzle, add finely chopped onion, saute for 1-2 minutes until translucent, and add the meat, tomato, tomato paste, and rinsed yellow split peas. Saute for a couple of minutes; now add pierced dried lemon, liquid saffron, and water.
- Close the lid and turn the steam release valve to the sealing position. Turn the warm mode off. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, let's prepare the eggplants. First, peel and cut eggplants in half lengthwise into thin slices. Next, season eggplants with salt and let them sit for 5-10 minutes. Then, place sliced eggplants on a plate lined with a paper towel to help soak up the moisture.
- Add ½ cup oil to a pan over medium heat. Fry sliced eggplants for about 5 minutes on each side until lightly golden and soft. Transfer fried eggplants to a plate lined with a paper towel.
- When the cooking time ends, quickly release the pressure by turning the valve to vent. Now add salt, black pepper, turmeric, and cinnamon stick.
- Finally, add the fried eggplants to the stew and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Place the stew in a serving dish and serve it with white rice.
