Tatar-Style Eggplant for Winter

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   To make Tatar-style eggplant for winter, gather the following: eggplant, tomatoes, sweet peppers, a hot chili pepper, garlic, neutral-flavored sunflower oil, salt, sugar, and vinegar.

2. Step 2:

   

   Wash all the vegetables well, seed the sweet peppers, and peel the garlic. Pat the eggplant dry and cut it into cubes or medium slices. With varieties high in solanine, salt the pieces first and let them sit a while, then rinse and squeeze them out; the varieties sold today usually don't need this step.

3. Step 3:

   

   Cut the sweet peppers into slices or strips. The brighter the peppers, the more colorful the whole dish will be.

4. Step 4:

   

   Cut the tomatoes into large pieces and grind them in a food processor, blender, or meat grinder—it doesn't matter which. You can leave some chunks so you can still taste the tomato's texture in the mix. That's up to you.

5. Step 5:

   

   A heavy pot or Dutch oven is handy for these preserves if you're making a big batch at once. Pour the tomato mixture into the bottom of the pot.

6. Step 6:

   

   Add the salt.

7. Step 7:

   

   Add the sugar and pour in the sunflower oil, stir the mixture, and bring it to a boil.

8. Step 8:

   

   Add the prepared vegetables to this sauce, starting with the eggplant,

9. Step 9:

   

   then the sweet pepper. Stir and cook over medium heat for 25–30 minutes.

10. Step 10:

    

    Make the spicy add-in: chop the hot pepper, with or without the seeds as you like. It can be fresh or dried—just remember dried is more concentrated, so taste as you add. The dish should be spicy, but only as spicy as you enjoy. Chop the garlic, adjusting the amount to taste as well. Stir the garlic and hot pepper into the simmering mixture.

11. Step 11:

    

    Simmer for another 10 minutes, then add the vinegar. You can use your own judgment on the vinegar: I don't always add it to tomato-based relishes, since they're already acidic and a good sterilizing or pasteurizing process is enough to make them keep for a long time. Vinegar just makes that more foolproof.