A wonderful combination of three traditional dishes came together for one excellent meal.
Bolani, Borani Banjan, and Kebab E Morgh. The shining star is the borani banjan, an eggplant dish with yogurt sauce. The co-stars also hold their own, tender grilled kebabs and a potato-stuffed flatbread.
***Let me start by saying that Afghanistan is more East than it is Middle East, but it is still very close to the Middle East culturally and politically. It's location is on the line between being Middle East and Asia. I was going to skip it, but Younes said it was Middle Eastern enough that the random generator could not be argued with. This article backs up that opinion.***
On to the food: The eggplant dish and the kebabs were very easy to make, and didn’t take long. If you don’t count the time it takes to marinate the chicken overnight, that is. And I’m glad I didn’t skip that step. It really makes a difference in turning out tender, juicy pieces of chicken.
First, for the kebab e morgh, the chicken is cut into 2 inch pieces and marinated with coriander, turmeric salt, pepper, yogurt, crushed garlic, and a bit of oil. Set aside in the fridge overnight. To finish the kebabs, you must realize that the rest of the food you're working on is going to take a lot longer than you first estimated and so you should enlist Younes to skewer and grill them for you. Easy.
The bolani is what took the longest amount of time to make. It is essentially a stuffed flatbread that is fried. Think of it like a potato quesadilla with out the queso! The dough is easy enough to make, it’s just flour, salt and enough oil and water to make the flour stick together. Knead it, and then let it rest for 30 minutes. During that time, I made the potato filling and got started on the other dish.
The borani banjan is also simple, but has one annoying step. The first thing you have to do is fry the eggplant. I dislike this part. Frying eggplant is frustrating for me. It always just soaks up all the oil and tends to get soggy. I had two pans going and did my best not to crowd the pans and get it to the required golden brown color in most places. No pics, just trust me.
Next, the garlic is sauteed in oil.
Then, you add the chopped tomatoes and spices. Allow the tomatoes to cook about 10 minutes until they are soft and mushy. Add the eggplant into the pan, with a little bit of water, and cover to cook for another 10 min. Try not to disrupt the eggplant by stirring it, you want the slices to remain whole.
The only thing left for the borani banjan is the yogurt sauce. Whip a cup of Greek yogurt together with a clove of crushed garlic. Spoon the yogurt over the eggplant and tomato sauce to serve. Finally, sprinkle some crushed dry mint on top! 😍
Now it’s back to the bolani. This is what ended up taking more time. You have to roll out the dough, and place a couple of spoonfuls of the potato mixture on one side. Fold it over and pinch it closed. I already had some oil heated in the pan, so once I had two done, I added them to the pan and started rolling out dough and stuffing the next ones. In the time it takes to assemble one stuffed flatbread, it’s time to flip the ones in the pan. When two are finished being assembled, the ones in the pan are ready to come out. It’s a very scientific method of cooking that I developed here.
The flavors in this meal were fantastic. I would describe it as a nice cross between the flavors of Middle Eastern and Indian cuisines, without all the heat of Indian food.
The borani banjan with the yogurt sauce and mint was the most exciting dish. But be warned, the garlic is strong in this dish. It’s a good thing we’re all wearing masks out and about these days! The bolani ended up being just the right tool for soaking up the tomato sauce, though I’m not sure that’s how it’s supposed to be eaten. Meanwhile, the kebabs were perfectly tender, and I could really taste the blend of turmeric and coriander in the outside crust.
Younes had a very simple reaction to this meal: good food is good. And I was very pleased with it, too. The leftovers were the best part of work the next day. 😉
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