Wash and peel the eggplants and cut into slices about 13mm thick.
Cover the slices with salt and place them in a colander until all the
slices are covered with salt. The salt draws out the bitter juices from
the eggplant and causes them to partially desiccate.
Leave the colander of salted eggplant to drain overnight. Next morning,
heat the vinegar in a saucepan and when boiling, drop the eggplant
slices into it in batches. Each slice should not be in the vinegar for
more than 15 – 20 seconds. The idea is to remove the salt, not cook the
eggplant.
Next, slice the eggplant into strips about 1cm wide. Place layers of
eggplant, herbs, garlic, chilli and mustard seeds into jars (go easy
with everything but the eggplant) and cover with olive oil. Seal and
leave for about a month before eating. Great with crackers and cheese. |
