Fried Eggplant Rolls with Walnuts
Ingredients
4–6 servings
Step-by-step recipe
Preparing the eggplant
Wash the eggplants and dry them. Cut off the ends.
Slice the eggplants lengthwise into thin slices, no more than 1 cm thick. Don’t use the outer slices. A medium eggplant gives 4–6 slices.
If the eggplants are bitter, salt the slices generously and put them under a weight for 15–20 minutes to draw out the bitterness.
Walnut filling
While the eggplant “rests”, make the filling. You can put everything through a meat grinder, or you can blitz it in a blender. We’ll use a blender.
Chop the cilantro with a knife and set aside.
Peel the garlic and onion. Cut the onion into 4–6 pieces.
Put the walnuts, peeled garlic, onion and cilantro in a blender, add salt and khmeli-suneli to taste, and pour in 1 tbsp grape vinegar. Blend everything to a paste.
Mix the paste very thoroughly. If it’s too dry, add a little pomegranate juice or wine vinegar. And the filling is ready.
Frying the eggplant
Rinse the salt off the eggplant, squeeze it with your hands and pat dry with a paper towel. If you didn’t salt the eggplant, go straight to frying.
Fry in vegetable oil in a very hot skillet until golden on each side. Try not to overcook. Eggplant soaks up a lot of oil while frying, so add more as you go.
The eggplant should turn deep golden.
Put the fried eggplant on a plate and let it cool.
Rolling up
While the eggplant cools, lay spinach or lettuce leaves on a large platter for a nicer presentation. If the leaves are a little limp, put them in cold water beforehand; they’ll turn crisp and fresh.
Once the eggplant has cooled, put a heaping teaspoon of filling on the end of an eggplant slice and press it lightly with your fingers into a firm lump.
One by one, carefully roll each eggplant slice around the filling.
Arrange the rolls on the prepared platter. You can even add a few herbs.
Put the eggplant with walnuts in the fridge to chill.
Calories and macros
430 kcal
Serving ≈ 260 g
- Protein6 g6% of kcal
- Fat40 g84% of kcal
- Carbs10 g10% of kcal
100 g164 kcalProtein 2.4 gFat 15.2 gCarbs 3.9 g
Calculated from the recipe ingredients, excluding salt and spices. Data: USDA and Matvaretabellen.
How did you like this recipe?
To Get It Right
Should you salt the eggplant
It’s worth salting and squeezing the slices even if the eggplant isn’t bitter: squeezed slices soak up less oil and don’t go mushy when fried. Readers suggest leaving them in salt longer, up to an hour, then squeezing well — then you need very little oil in the skillet.
How to grind the walnuts
For eggplant rolls with walnuts, readers suggest blending the walnuts on their own first, until they start to release a little oil, and only then adding the onion, garlic, cilantro and spices. This makes the filling rich and smooth, as in Georgia.
What to use instead of grape vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is milder than grape vinegar, so add it to the eggplant roll filling a little at a time and taste. Pomegranate juice also works well — it gives that Caucasian tang. Don’t overdo the vinegar: too much overpowers everything else.
No blender
The filling for eggplant rolls can go through a meat grinder. Or do it all by hand: grate the onion, crush the walnuts with the bottom of a glass, finely chop the herbs and garlic.
Have your own trick for this recipe?
Questions and answers
What are Georgian eggplant rolls with walnuts called?
In Georgia they’re badrijani nigvzit, literally “eggplant with walnuts”. The filling tastes like bazhe, a spicy sauce of walnuts with garlic and wine vinegar.
Can you add cheese to the filling?
Yes. A little grated sulguni, feta or cream cheese makes the filling softer and creamier. Use less salt then, since the cheese is salty.
Can you bake the eggplant for the rolls in the oven?
Yes, and it takes much less oil. Brush the slices with oil, lay them on a lined baking sheet and bake at 200 °C for 15–20 minutes, until soft and lightly browned.
Can you make eggplant with walnuts ahead?
Yes, a few hours before serving: in the fridge the rolls chill and soak up the filling. Keep them in a covered container in the fridge and eat within 1–2 days.
Can you preserve eggplant with walnuts for winter?
This recipe is an appetizer to eat now, not for jars: a filling of raw walnuts, garlic and herbs doesn’t keep long. For winter preserves, choose recipes made for canning.