Eggplant Pilaf in Olive Oil

This is a Turkish zeytinyagli dish, meaning it’s cooked in olive oil and served cold. That might sound unusual, but cold rice pilafs are a cornerstone of Turkish cuisine and this one, loaded with golden eggplant cubes, toasted pine nuts, currants, and a full cup of fresh dill, is one of the best.

The eggplant prep takes patience but pays off. Salting the cubes for three hours draws out bitter moisture. Rinsing and draining thoroughly before frying means the eggplant absorbs less oil and browns better instead of steaming in its own liquid.

The striped peeling technique isn’t just decorative. Leaving alternating strips of skin on helps the cubes hold their shape during cooking. Fully peeled eggplant collapses into mush.

Cinnamon and allspice give the rice a warm, aromatic quality that’s distinctly Ottoman. Currants plump up during cooking and add little pockets of sweetness between the savory rice and earthy eggplant. The dill stirred in at the end keeps its bright, grassy freshness.

The towel-under-the-lid technique for the final 30-minute steam absorbs condensation that would otherwise drip back onto the rice and make it soggy.

Chef Tips

• Soak the rice in salted hot water until cool. This removes excess starch and helps each grain cook separately.
• Fry the eggplant until truly golden on all sides. Underbrowned eggplant tastes spongy and bitter.
• Use a heat diffuser for the final steaming step. Direct low heat can still scorch the bottom.
• Serve at room temperature, not ice cold. The olive oil flavor comes through best slightly cool.

Variations

• Add a tablespoon of tomato paste with the diced tomato for deeper color and tang.
• Scatter pomegranate seeds over the finished pilaf for jeweled color and tart crunch.
• Replace the currants with golden raisins for a milder, sweeter dried fruit note.