Oven Baked Aubergine/Fish

Oven Baked Aubergine

I have recently rediscovered the wonderful versatility of the aubergine. With the Vegetarian option of this dish, as you slice open the purple skin of the aubergine, nestling on a bed of vegetables, the white flesh is a great contrast in colour, and the texture is like that of a fish and works as a great alternative. 

The savoury sauce adds great flavour to the fillet of aubergine/fish in this simple dish. The sultanas (if used) give a Mallorcan twist, providing a sweet richness.

Serves: 1 Vegetarian, 1 Pescatarian

 

1 medium onion, diced

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 green bell pepper, deseeded and diced

1 large tomato, skinned and chopped

1 glass dry white wine

Olive oil

Handful fresh herbs – thyme, rosemary, parsley

Sea salt and black pepper

Handful sultanas (optional)

V: 1 aubergine

P: Firm textured white fish fillet – cod, haddock, sea bream

P: Gut the fish and discard the innards, if the fish monger hasn’t already.

Fry the onion and green bell pepper in a little olive oil until soft but not coloured, adding the garlic towards the end of cooking.  Add the wine, tomato, herbs and season to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add water is necessary, to keep the sauce moist. Divide the sauce.

V: Place the aubergine in an oven proof dish and pour over half the sauce. Cook covered in the oven for 40 minutes. 

Wait about 20 minutes before adding the fish version (see below). 

P: Place the fish in an oven proof dish and pour over the rest of the sauce. Cook covered in the oven for 20 minutes. Check it’s cooked before serving as size of fish and temperature are variable.

Mallorcan rice

Mallorcan Rice

The Spanish have many rice dishes, paella being the most popular and renowned. This delicate Mallorcan rice dish is full of varied textures and works well both as a light lunch with salad or as a side dish. I served it with a juicy Mallorca oven-baked fish/aubergine dish.

Serves 2

½ litre vegetable stock                 

200 g long grain rice (100g per person)

2 potatoes, peeled, diced

4 cloves garlic, peeled, lightly crushed

2 tomatoes, halved

Handful, Chickpeas from a tin (if using dried, soak over-night before cooking)

Sea salt and black pepper

Heat oven to 200 degrees.

Fry garlic and potatoes in a little olive oil, until slightly soft. Add the halved tomatoes, chickpeas and rice and continue frying for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour over the boiling stock, stir together and transfer to an oven dish. Bake covered for approx 18 minutes.

Mallorcan Tumbet

France has Ratatouille, Bulgaria has Turlu Guvec and Mallorca has Tumbet.

Each dish is a slightly different variation of the other but each version is simply made, allowing the natural juices of the vegetables to mix together.

Local Vegetables

Tumbet

Tumbet

You will need to put a bit of time aside for the Mallorca Tumbet as it involves frying all the ingredients separately before baking in the oven. To pass the time, it's always good to have a companion. I was joined by Señor Oveja (Mr Sheep) who popped his head through the window to sample the tantalizing dish!

Señor Oveja

I find Mallorcan cookery can sometimes be quite oily so I try to use as little oil as I can. If you have one, use a spray to lightly spray the pan with olive oil before frying or pour in as little as possible and spread evenly.

Tumbet is the perfect accompaniment to a lovely lamb chop or a simple fried egg.

I opted for the vegetarian dish this evening as the eggs in Mallorca are extremely fresh and flavoursome.

Serves: 1 vegetarian, 1 meat-eater

2 large potatoes (preferably mallorca) peeled, sliced

1 green bell pepper, deseeded and sliced

1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced

1 aubergine, sliced – salted, drained on kitchen paper

I courgette, sliced

Sauce

6 tomatoes, chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1tsp cayenne pepper

Handful fresh herbs or 1 tbsp mix of dried herbs – parsley, oregano, thyme, rosemary

For the sauce, cook all ingredients in a little olive oil for 30 minutes. Season to taste and add a little water to keep the sauce moist throughout.

Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees.

Meanwhile, fry all the Tumbet ingredients separately in a very small amount of olive oil for approx 6 minutes each, turning halfway.

Layer a dish with each of the Tumbet ingredients.

Push tomato sauce through a colander, discarding skins and pour over layered vegetables. Bake covered for 30 minutes.

Tumbet is a great dish on its own but sometimes I serve it with:

V: a fried egg

M: a lamb chop 

Mallorcan Tumbet with Fried Egg