Kuku Bademjan
Kuku (also sometimes spelled Kookoo) is essentially a very heavily vegetable laden frittata with Persian spices. The most popular I have noticed is Kuku Sabzi which is chock full of herbs and comes out a bright green. This is a more savory version with eggplant, zucchini, potatoes, and onion. Each vegetable is cooked on its own to give it a chance to get well-browned and perfectly cooked. This was delicious as part of a Azeri feast for this year’s F1 Race in Baku!
Kuku Bademjan (Eggplant and Vegetable Frittata)
Serves 6-8
1 Italian eggplant or 2 small Japanese eggplants
2 medium zucchini
3 medium white potatoes
1 large onion peeled, sliced thin
About ½ cup vegetable oil for frying the vegetables
1 small Roma tomato, diced small
6 large eggs
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp cinnamon
Optional: add a dash of garlic powder, dash of ginger powder, and a dash of coriander
1 tsp kosher salt
½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp butter
1. Heat ⅛ cup vegetable oil over medium heat, add the sliced onions and fry until golden brown. Remove the fried onions with a spatula and transfer to a large bowl. You will be using the same skillet for frying the rest of the vegetables.
The vegetables are prepared and kept in separate bowls and will be fried separately.
2. Meanwhile prepare the rest of the vegetables: Peel and dice the potatoes into ½ inch cubes. Leave the skin on the zucchini and dice into ½-inch cubes. Peel the eggplants and dice into ½ inch cubes.
3. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet (about ¼ cup) and heat over medium heat. Fry the cubed potatoes until golden brown. Use a spatula to transfer the potatoes to the fried onions in the large bowl.
4. There should be some oil left in the skillet. Fry the cubed zucchini over medium heat until golden brown. Add a little more oil if needed. Add the fried zucchini to the large bowl.
5. In the same skillet heat ⅛ cup oil over medium heat. Add the eggplants and stir to coat. Cover the skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes, or until the eggplants are tender. Remove the lid and continue cooking until the eggplants are golden brown. Add more oil if needed. Transfer the eggplants to the bowl. Set aside.
6. Add the diced tomato to the fried vegetables in the large bowl and stir to combine.
7. In a medium bowl whisk eggs, salt and the spices until foamy. Pour over the fried vegetables and stir to combine well.
8. Rinse and dry the skillet. Heat 1 Tbsp vegetable oil and 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat.
9. Add the Kuku mixture to the skillet and level the top with the back of a spoon.
10. Place a damkesh on the lid (or large kitchen towel tied over top of the lid) and cover the skillet. This is to prevent the moisture that builds up in the lid from dripping back into the Kuku and making it soggy.
11. Place the covered skillet over medium low heat and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the surface seems cooked and is firm to touch. Remove the skillet from the heat.
12. Put a round 12-inch platter over the skillet and invert the Kuku onto the platter.
Carefully slide the Kuku back into the skillet from the platter, now the bottom is up. Cook for another 15 minutes without a cover on medium low, until the other side is golden brown.
13. Invert the Kuku onto the serving platter and let it sit for 5 minutes before cutting it into 6-8 wedges for serving.
Serve warm with any bread of your choice, a salad, or fresh herb platter. We also made some Kurdish White Beans and Persian Rice.
Adapted from Persian Mama
