"Ten" Eggplant Salad for Winter

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   How do you make the "Ten" salad? It's very simple — you won't even need a scale, since you use exactly ten of each ingredient. This time I'm making half a batch, so "five of each."

2. Step 2:

   

   So, take ten each of eggplant, bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Peel the onions and trim the stems off the eggplants. Halve the peppers and remove the cores and seeds. Peel ten cloves of garlic. Wash and dry everything well.

3. Step 3:

   

   Take a large, heavy-bottomed pot and pour in 200 ml (a cup) of odorless vegetable oil.

4. Step 4:

   

   Cut the eggplant into rounds about ¼–½ inch (0.5–1 cm) thick. Put the eggplant rounds into the pot with the oil and add the salt and sugar to draw out their juices.

5. Step 5:

   

   Cut the onions into half-moons (or quarter-rings if the onions are large) and layer them over the eggplant.

6. Step 6:

   

   Next comes a layer of pepper. Cut the peppers into strips or half-moons.

7. Step 7:

   

   This step is optional. I don't like running into tomato skins in winter salads, so I always peel them while cooking. It doesn't take long: cut a shallow cross in each tomato, then dip it in boiling water and then cold water for a couple of seconds each — the skin slips right off.

8. Step 8:

   

   Cut the tomatoes into 6–8 wedges and add them as the next layer in the pot. Set the pot over medium heat and bring it to a boil.

9. Step 9:

   

   Once it boils, lower the heat and cook for 20–30 minutes, gently stirring the salad 2–3 times so you don't break up the vegetables. Then add the chopped garlic and vinegar and cook for another 5 minutes.

10. Step 10:

    

    While the salad cooks, prepare the jars. Wash them with baking soda and sterilize them however you like. Ladle the boiling-hot salad into the jars and seal with lids. Turn the jars upside down, wrap them in a blanket, and leave them until completely cool.