It’s September and stew is on my mind. Usually when people think of stew, I think they think of meat, but I have found I don’t need meat to make a good hearty stew. If you throw a few beans in with some vegies and spices, you end up with something that is not only tasty and good for you, but also high in protein and flavor.
I know some of you are afraid of eggplant. I have a friend who teases me about putting eggplant in things. She can’t stand the thought of eating eggplant. What is so scary about eggplant? Is it that it’s purple? Oh how can you scorn such a lovely hue? What is more beautiful than an elegant lavender or that dark dark purple so dark it’s almost black. What better color to eat than purple?
Usually the purple cooks out and you end up with more of a brown color anyway. In fact, it looks a lot like meat! But the taste is sublime.
I suggest if you have an aversion to eggplant, perhaps you ought to give it a try. You might discover you like it … and that would open a whole new world of taste to you.
In this dish, I even covered the eggplant in chocolate for you. Yes, chocolate. In a stew. I know it’s weird. But it’s a good kinda weird. Go on, take a bite! It’s delicious …
Lentil and Eggplant Stew Mole
I saw this recipe on Serious Eats and thought it would be a wonderful hearty way to cook up some of my eggplant. Mole is a spicy savory Mexican sauce that is usually made with chile peppers and dark chocolate. I couldn’t find my cocoa powder, so I had to substitute chocolate syrup! It turned out beautiful though, with just a hint of chocolate aftertaste.
Ingredients:
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano + a bunch of fresh oregano leaves (or 2 t. dried)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup
- 1 1/2 cups dry red lentils
- 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped (or one 15-oz. can)
- 3 skinny Japanese eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 2 lb., the recipe says)
- Chopped tomato and cilantro, for garnish
Directions:
- Toss everything into the crockpot and cook on low until the stew is cooked and the lentils are soft and plump … or until you get home after the day’s activities and you are starving for something hearty and hot. That’s what I did. I let it cook from morning till about 9 pm when we got home.
- Serve hot over rice with chopped tomato & cilantro on top.
