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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Makdoos

Well Makdoos is pretty much a stuffed pickled eggplant and it is DELISHHHHHH!!! I have always loved makdoos and i remember going to Syria and my Tehteh would be like "Oh i just put fresh makdoos in the oil for you." and Hadeel and i would be like uhh we want the old ones in Zabadani (the weekend house up in the mountains) because we (my tehteh and family) didn't go up very often the makdoos would become sour and yummy but when they are fresh in oil they still have an eggplant taste. I learned how to make makdoos when a girl named Hana came and lived with us for a year and we made a butt load of makdoos. The problem with making makdoos here in the states is that its your luck when it comes to eggplants, some are good, some have loads of seeds and some become rubbery on the outside. From my experience i will try to explain which ones are most likely to come out.


First you need to buy a load of eggplants. Look for dark black long ones; the ones that are pretty chubby and round will have a lot of seeds and will have a bad skin texture when they are cooked.
Place them in boiling water and place a plate or some weight on top so all of them are submerged in water
Cook until the tops come off easily, about 15 to 25 minutes, it really depends on the eggplant. When the top comes off without ripping it means it is cooked perfectly.
Cut open the eggplant but don't cut all the way threw. Sprinkle the inside with kosher salt.
i usually place some in a bowl and sprinkle otherwise you might add too much if you use it straight from the box
Place the eggplants in a strainer and then......
My Yebra2 weight (i got a new one cause obviously this one is breaking apart)
Then i begin to stack with as much weight as i can and let it strain for 2 days (not longer because it will mold, that is why you need as much weight as possible.
See, when i first stacked the eggplant it was coming over the strainer, now it is like half way
I got about this much liquid out 5 times
Use red Anaheim peppers and cut them really thin in small cubes. First i cut them in half and remove the seeds, then i cut them in strips and finally i cut them so they are little cubes
I like my makdoos a little spicy so i also add red jalapeno peppers and do the same as the Anaheim peppers. If you can't find Anaheim's then use bell peppers.
Add some salt to the peppers and squish them to get as much water out as possible.
Strain the peppers as well, try to get them as dry as possible.
Mix the peppers with walnuts (a few more walnuts then peppers) and garlic and salt to taste. I cut the walnuts by hand, some people put them in a blender but walnuts contain a lot of oil and you do not want to end up with a paste.
Stuff the strained eggplants with as much stuffing as possible (with them still being able to shut) and stack them in a clean jar. Turn them over and let them drain for 1 more day
Once the makdoos have drained pour over some olive oil. Make sure to try and get all the air bubbles out by tapping the container or by using a knife to squeeze the bubbles out.
The eggplants are ready after about 2-3 days. I usually wait until the oil has a red tint to it from the peppers. If you want to keep you makdoos from getting sour then cover them with oil, let them sit out for 2 to 3 days and then place them in the fridge.

yummmmmmy....and yes i eat them sour. Also sometimes people cut up tomatoes and makdoos and eat it with pita bread

Written Recipe:

4 Anaheim peppers
4 jalapeno peppers
3 cloves of garlic
kosher salt
3 pounds of small eggplants (or as many as you want)
1 cup of walnuts
olive oil

6 comments:

  1. Hi Maysa

    I just discovered your blog today and I love it. Really nice food. Very Authentic.

    Makes me happy to see Syrian food blogs. There was only me when I started a year and a half ago and now there are at least half a dozen blogs I know of.

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  2. yaaaaaay i just saw this one!can't wait to try this..thank u ya amar:)

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  3. can't wait to share this with my mom! she's always asking me how to make this!
    btw- my husband and I are huge fans of kano's blog above, how cool that he's following you too! you're awesome!! miss you!!

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  4. Hiba, i know right?!? i have been following his blog for some time now..now i have 2 big cooking gurus following my blog :-)

    Oh and yes try this recipe...its how most Syrians make it (aka my dads fam, in laws, and this lady from Syria that lived with us for a while)

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  5. My husband is Palestinian. I love my mother in law's cooking, but sometimes it's so difficult for me to ever get a recipe straight. She never measures! Appreciate your breakdown. Thanks!

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  6. Quick question. We're Palestinian, and I LOVE makdoos. Once its made, I can't wait a week to open it up! I followed this recipe, and the only thing I'm wondering about is the texture of the eggplant. When my mother in law makes it, the eggplants are still too hard to just break with bread, you have to basically slice them into pita-bite-size pieces first. When I boiled them until the tops came off like you said (these eggplants were really stubborn and small, even after all that time the tops didn't exactly slip off), they got REALLY soft. I was just wondering if your makdoos is usually like that, soft, or if it tends to be harder and I need to boil these super tiny eggplants for less time if I want to serve it to others (I personally liked them soft!)

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