Ajapsandali is a Georgian vegetable stew, eaten across the Caucasus and adopted widely in Russia wherever Caucasian food is cooked. It is a summer dish, made when eggplant, tomato and bell pepper are at their peak. The vegetables are cut into large chunks and stewed together with onion, garlic, coriander and basil, the eggplant absorbing the tomato juices and the flavours of the other vegetables. Unlike a French ratatouille, which is carefully layered, ajapsandali is a rougher, more rustic one-pot stew, and it is always finished with a generous amount of fresh coriander and crushed garlic added off the heat. Eaten with fresh bread and cheese, it is a complete vegetarian meal, and it is served at room temperature in summer.
Soft, yielding chunks of eggplant and potato in a glossy tomato sauce, sweet pepper running through, the raw garlic and coriander bright on top. Eaten at room temperature with bread, each spoonful tasting of high summer.
The technique is a one-pot stew in the vegetables' own juices. Eggplant is cut into large chunks and salted to remove bitterness (a traditional step, though modern eggplants rarely need it). Potato, bell pepper, onion and tomato are cut the same size. The vegetables are layered in a pot with oil, the wettest (tomato) at the bottom to provide cooking liquid. Simmered covered for 30 to 40 minutes, the vegetables cook in their own steam, the eggplant absorbing the juices. Off the heat, crushed garlic and chopped coriander are stirred in, their raw sharpness preserved by the residual heat. The dish is rested and served warm or at room temperature, which intensifies the flavours.
Variations
Some add chili for heat. A version with baked vegetables is richer.
On the Palate
Where Ajapsandali sits in the Russian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6How it's made
5 steps · 20 min
- 15 min
Cut 2 eggplants, 3 potatoes, 2 bell peppers and 4 tomatoes into large chunks; slice 2 onions.
- 25 min
Heat 5 tbsp oil in a large pot; fry the onions 5 minutes until soft.
- 38 min
Add the eggplant, potato, bell pepper and tomato; season with salt, cover and simmer 35 minutes.
Watch outLayer the veg over the wet tomato at the bottom and let it stew in its own steam — no need to add water; the tomato juice is the cooking liquid, and the eggplant drinks it up.
- 44 min
Off the heat, stir in 4 crushed garlic cloves and a large handful of chopped coriander.
Watch outStir the raw garlic and coriander in off the heat — the residual warmth keeps their sharp fresh edge; add them while it's still cooking and that brightness cooks away.
- 53 min
Rest 10 minutes; serve warm or at room temperature with bread.
