Baking • Simmering and Stewing • black pepper • cayenne pepper or red pepper • eggplant • fish • onion • salt • tomato (canned tomato)
Baked Fish and Eggplant
Eggplants in Africa are usually the smaller, more bitter kind. It is these small egg-sized eggplants, especially the lighter-colored varieties, that give the fruit its common name in English. Eggplant has been grown and used in Asia since prehistoric times; it came to Africa via Arabia during the Middle Ages. You can use any kind of eggplant in this recipe. If you don’t care for the flavor of eggplant, you might like it better if you salt and rinse it as described below.
Baked Fish and Eggplant Recipe
Fish cooked with eggplant and chile pepper.
Ingredients
1 ½ lbs fish, cut into serving-sized pieces (fillet of sole is good)
2 lbs eggplant, aubergine, or guinea squash (1 large eggplant or a few small ones), peeled and diced
3 tomatoes, chopped; or canned tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
1 cup water
black pepper, cayenne pepper or red pepper, salt (to taste)
Instructions
1
If desired: Place eggplant in a colander or on a rack, sprinkle with salt and allow it to rest for 30 to 60 minutes. Before proceeding, rinse the eggplant thoroughly in cold water and pat it dry with paper towels.
2
Combine eggplant, onion, tomatoes, spices, and water in large pot. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat and mash.
3
Oil baking pan with oil. Place half of the vegetable mash into pan. Layer fish over vegetables. Top with remaining mashed vegetables. Bake until fish is fully done. (If you are afraid it might burn, cover it with foil.)
Ingredients
1 ½ lbs fish, cut into serving-sized pieces (fillet of sole is good)
2 lbs eggplant, aubergine, or guinea squash (1 large eggplant or a few small ones), peeled and diced
3 tomatoes, chopped; or canned tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
1 cup water
black pepper, cayenne pepper or red pepper, salt (to taste)
Directions
1
If desired: Place eggplant in a colander or on a rack, sprinkle with salt and allow it to rest for 30 to 60 minutes. Before proceeding, rinse the eggplant thoroughly in cold water and pat it dry with paper towels.
2
Combine eggplant, onion, tomatoes, spices, and water in large pot. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat and mash.
3
Oil baking pan with oil. Place half of the vegetable mash into pan. Layer fish over vegetables. Top with remaining mashed vegetables. Bake until fish is fully done. (If you are afraid it might burn, cover it with foil.)
Serve with Baton de Manioc (also called Chikwangue), or Fufu, and African Hot Sauce.
Bitter eggplant cooked with hot chile pepper is a common dish in Central Africa.