Halim bademjan

Method

1. 1 Soak the broken wheat for 8 hours, then cook for 50 minutes until the grains are soft and fluffy.
2. 2 Grill whole eggplants over a fire for 15 minutes, then peel off the burnt skin and drain on a sieve.
3. 3 Fry the thinly sliced onions for 25 minutes until browned and crispy, then remove half and set aside for the topping.
4. 4 Mix the eggplant with the wheat and then pound vigorously with a wooden mallet for 15 minutes until the mixture is smooth and sticky.
5. 5 Beating with a pestle creates the characteristic sticky texture of all halim dishes; grinding with a machine results in a paste-like consistency.
6. 6 Mix the kashk and turmeric together, then drizzle with onion oil, sprinkle with fried onions, dried mint, and chili powder.

With an appliance

• Pressure cooker 1 hr 40 min

  Replace step 1: cook the wheat under high pressure for 16 minutes, then release the pressure naturally; the pounding must still be done by hand.