Mirza, an Eggplant Dip

Mirza is a quick and delicious way to prepare eggplant and tomatoes. It’s a great dip to serve with pita bread. I first tried this at Casba the Mediterranean restaurant that was across from Zephyr in Livermore. I loved it and asked for the ingredients and feel this was a close replica of it. Fenugreek is a herb with impressive health benefits. Ground sumac is a versatile spice with a tangy lemony flavor,

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoon California olive oil

1 eggplant, eggplant, skinned and cut into cubes

6 tomatoes, coarsely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

¼ tsp cumin

¼ tsp sumac

¼ tsp fenugreek

1 egg, beaten

 Directions

1.    Heat oil in a medium stock pot or large skillet

2.    Add eggplant then garlic, tomatoes and spices

3.    Cook 45 minutes, stirring frequently. 

4.    Add olive oil and egg, scramble. 

5.    When all mixed serve with pita bread, toast, or crackers

Make it your own

Don’t have Fenugreek, substitute one of the following:

Toasted yellow mustard seeds + pinch maple syrup

Yellow mustard seeds 

Brown mustard seeds 

Masala curry powder

Or a ½ tsp maple syrup 

Don’t have sumac, substitute the following:

¼ teaspoon lemon zest

¼ tsp black pepper

Dice a small onion and sauté until it is translucent before adding the eggplant, step 1

Substitute one 15 oz can of Muir Glen diced or crush fire roasted tomatoes for the fresh tomatoes, step 2