Imam Biyaldi

Imam Biyaldi, or “the imam fainted,” is a dish I fell in love with during my time at Oleana. There are two possible origin stories to this Ottoman dish. The first being that the imam fainted because the stuffed eggplant with garlic and tomatoes was so delicious. The second being that he fainted due to the amount of very expensive olive oil used in its production during his 12 day wedding feast. Whatever the lore, it is a tantalizing dish!

I love the process of preparing this dish–it’s so tactile and engaging. Cutting and rubbing the eggplant with olive oil, grating the tomatoes by hand and dicing all of the different vegetables  is my little offering to the bountiful summer season. I take a moment to appreciate all the farms who are represented in this one dish–this perfect love letter to summer. Thank you @anasortun, for such a wonderful gift. 

We are featuring this dish at our Shoulder Season pop up on Monday, September 23 at Bradbury’s.  Come bask in the glow of the early autumn light as we cook with the last of the summer ingredients.