Sami Tamimi’s Roasted Aubergine Fatteh – Fattet Makdous
Sami Tamimi's recipe for aubergine fatteh is an incredible marriage of flavours and textures – crisp pita, tangy yoghurt sauce, sweet tomato sauce and chunks of roasted aubergine, garnished with almonds and pomegranate seeds for an extra crunch and colour.
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Introduction
Fatteh is one of those dishes that each household makes slightly differently. It’s a centrepiece, placed in the middle of the table for everyone to tuck into. It is a dish to fall in love with and to make over and over again.
Fatteh makdous must strike a balance between the crunchiness of the bread, the tartness of the tomato sauce and the creaminess of the yoghurt tahini. It’s what you want from such a star dish. All the components for the fatteh can be made a day or so in advance and assembled just before serving. To make this vegan, leave out the yoghurt and make tahini sauce instead (see Roasted Cauliflower with Tahini and Crushed Tomatoes recipe for the tahini sauce).
Ingredients
| 2 (240g) | pita breads or 4 large flour tortillas, cut into 2–3cm pieces |
| 70ml | olive oil, plus more for drizzling |
| 2 medium (500g) | aubergines, cut into 3cm chunks |
| 2 tsp | sumac |
| ½ tsp | sweet paprika |
| salt and black pepper | |
| For the yoghurt sauce: | |
|---|---|
| 400g | Greek yoghurt |
| 3 tbsp | tahini paste |
| 1 | garlic clove, crushed |
| 1 | green chilli, finely chopped |
| 2 tbsp | lemon juice |
| For the tomato sauce: | |
| 1 medium (130g) | onion, finely chopped |
| 2 tbsp | olive oil |
| 450g | passata |
| 1 tbsp | pomegranate molasses |
| To serve: | |
| 35g | whole blanched almonds, toasted |
| 5g | fresh parsley, roughly chopped |
| 1 | red chilli, finely chopped |
| 30g | pomegranate seeds (optional) |
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan and line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
Put the bread pieces into a bowl with 35ml of the olive oil and mix well to coat. Lay the bread in one layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 17 minutes, or until golden and crispy. Leave aside for later.
Increase the oven temperature to 220°C fan. Put the aubergine chunks into a large bowl, add the remaining 35ml of olive oil, the sumac, paprika, ½ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper and toss well to coat. Arrange the aubergines on a lined baking sheet and roast for 25 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.
While the aubergine is cooking, make the yoghurt sauce. Put all the ingredients into a medium bowl, add ½ teaspoon of salt and mix well to combine. Store in the fridge until needed.
To make the tomato sauce, put the onion into a small saucepan with the olive oil and cook on a medium–low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onion is golden and soft. Add the passata, pomegranate molasses, ⅓ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer on a very low heat for 7 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
When ready to serve, layer the bread pieces at the bottom of a serving platter with a lip or a wide shallow bowl. Spoon over the yoghurt sauce, followed by the tomato sauce. Arrange the aubergine chunks on top and garnish with the almonds, parsley, chilli and pomegranate seeds, if using, then finish with a drizzle of olive oil.
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