Smokey Summer Aubergine Stew

I know stew is usually synonyms with the cold months but this smokey, vibrant dish will 100% change your mind. It’s one of those fantastic ‘chuck all the ingredients in and then let it simmer to perfection’ kind of dishes and the result is utterly delicious whilst also feeling good for the soul and body.

I like to serve it with brown rice and drizzled w tahini but any grain would work and it’s also delicious topped with yoghurt or harissa! For the tahini I just whisk together equal parts tahini + cold water with a squeeze of lemon + sea salt. It’s such a great little recipe to have up your sleeve as brings so much life to so many dishes from salads to roast chicken or fish.

The stew itself will keep for 3 days in the fridge or make a big batch and freeze.

Serves 3-4

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2 tbsp sunflower oil

1 red onion, sliced

2 medium aubergines, cut into quarters and then into 1-cm thick slices

3 cloves garlic, peeled but left whole

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp sea salt

500ml tomato passata

250ml water or vegetable stock

1 tbsp harissa, optional 

2 tsp honey

1x 400g tin chickpeas, drained

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Preheat the oven to 200°C. Put all the ingredients up to the tomato passata in a large ovenproof dish. Place over a high heat and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the water, followed by the passata, and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and place straight into the oven for 30-35 minutes until the the aubergine is tender and the sauce thickened. Remove and stir through the harissa, honey and chickpeas and place back in the oven for 10-15minutes. Serve straight from the oven with brown rice and a drizzle of tahini or yoghurt.