Fried Eggplant with Harissa and Dill by Alison Roman

I made seven Alison Roman recipes last week. All of them, except one, were very good. But for whatever reason, this eggplant dish is the one I can’t stop thinking about! 

Through this project, I’ve grown to really like eggplant, which is saying something considering where I started. I used to shutter at the soggy appearance of cooked eggplant in the cafeteria, and wondered how anyone could want to eat it instead of the always-available pizza and salad bar. I now realize that my college cafeteria, as exemplary for the circumstances as it was, did not treat eggplant with the care and flavors that it is due. 

I started to appreciate eggplant for all its creamy and flavor-soaking qualities when I first made Alison’s Long-Roasted Eggplant with Garlic, Labne, and Tiny Chile Croutons. There especially I learned how well eggplant goes with spice. Which is exactly what this fried eggplant recipe does so nicely. 

The eggplant is sliced into ½-inch rounds and fried in a boat load of olive oil (I probably used 1½ cups when all was said and done). The eggplant gets a nice toasted surface and soaks in all the yummy oil. It took about 20 minutes to fry it, since I could only fit so many rounds in my large skillet. Once the frying is complete, the pan is removed from heat and filled with a spicy sauce made of water, harissa paste, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, and vinegar. The sauce immediately bubbles in the pan, inviting the eggplant back into the skillet for tossing. Though 2 tbsp. of harissa and a teaspoon of red pepper flakes are used, the spiciness was quite tolerable and the heat more acidic than dry. The creamy eggplant played well with the tangy spices. Finally, the whole plate is topped with dill and flaky salt. 

I made this dish for dinner on a night when my brother-in-law was coming over. I could see his polite skepticism as soon as I brought out the plate. He reached for only two pieces and began eating the rest of his meal. But after a few bites, I could tell he had changed his mind. He and Jordan both helped to finish off the eggplant, which I count as a real victory. The leftover oily juices also made a lovely dipping spread for sourdough bread. 

70 recipes cooked, 155 to go.

Eggs and Kale Fried in Chicken Fat by Alison Roman

I love fried eggs. I have since the morning in college that I saw Sarah (a personal hero of mine) dip her toast into the runny egg yolk pooling on her plate. I grew up in a household that cooks egg yolks until very dry. So I had subscribed to the dry egg yolk idea myself. Until Sarah unashamedly revelled in the goodness of a runny yolk and declared it her favorite breakfast. All of my assumptions about eggs went straight out the window. If Sarah can enjoy a bright yellow pool of yolk, you bet I can too. From that day on, I’ve made only over-easy fried eggs, and I always have them with toast. 

Alison Roman has succeeded in upping over-easy fried eggs’ ante by swapping the typical olive oil or butter with chicken fat. To my fellow fried egg lovers, let me tell you, this substitution will rock your egg world. 

“Where does one acquire chicken fat?,” I initially wondered. Never fear, Alison’s got you covered. Yesterday I posted about Crispy Chicken Legs with Tiny Potatoes. Well, the cup and a half of olive oil used to cook the chicken legs can be strained and saved for this very purpose! This leftover oil can be used for other cooking needs as well. For example, I used it to make a batch of Alison’s Roasted Tomato and Anchovy Bucatini a few days ago. 

Just the act of re-heating this oily fat in the pan releases so many irresistible smells - salty chicken, poached garlic, a hint of rosemary. My mouth watered before the eggs were even cracked from their shells. Both the kale and eggs are fried in the fat separately. The kale only spends about 4 minutes in the pan, until it begins to crisp at the edges. The eggs spend about 3 minutes over medium-high heat, making sure the yolks remain full of runny goodness. 

I can’t recommend enough the power of a piece of homemade sourdough bread to drag across the yolk. I imagine a homemade english muffin would have the same effect. 

The crispy chicken recipe yielded about 1 cup of fat. This egg and kale recipe only requires 4 Tbsp, so there is enough for several breakfasts more. I will savor every drop.

42 recipes cooked, 183 to go.

Olive Oil-Fried Lentils with Cherry Tomatoes and a Chile-Fried Egg by Alison Roman

Alison Roman is the slightly older, cool girlfriend I wish I had in college. 

Allow me to elaborate with a story about lentils. It was a cold, January night, and I was invited to eat dinner at a friend’s college apartment. She was a Senior, I was a Sophomore. I felt very cool as I left my dorm room to skip out on cafeteria food. Shortly after arriving, I learned that we’d be eating lentils. I nodded excitedly, while inwardly racking my brain… I had no idea what lentils were. She would now begin to prepare our meal, she announced with an air of nonchalant authority. Her first step was to chop an onion. How grown-up it all sounded. I wanted to watch her up close. She took a dull bladed knife and began sawing her way through the onion’s middle. Quickly, I began to feel an odd stinging sensation in my eyes. The more I watched her, the more intense the pain became as it spread to my nose and throat. It was a foreign feeling, and it scared me out of my wits. What was happening to me? I began shedding tears. She looked at me and said “The onion’s making you cry. You should go in the other room.” The instruction sounded strange but I didn’t question her. I spent a few minutes in her bedroom as the burning sensation slowly left, all the while asking myself what just happened. That was the first time I ever cried over an onion. 

But back to lentils. By the time I emerged from the bedroom, my friend had moved on to sautéing the onion and boiling a pot of lentils on the stove. We chatted a bit as I watched her intensely, trying to appear chill. She drained the lentils over the sink and poured them into the pan full of onions. After just a few minutes of pushing them around, with a few added dashes of salt, our dinner was ready. I didn’t know what to expect. I especially didn’t expect I’d be eating a bowl of practically flavorless, mushy green pebbles. For a brief moment, I wished to be eating rubbery pork tenderloin and green beans in the cafeteria. But then I figured that this was a good growth opportunity for me. I had to learn what real adults cooked eventually. I’d be there soon myself... For the next few years, this was my impression of lentils - soft, flavorless pellets, destined for a melancholy meal. 

That friend didn’t know what the heck she was doing with lentils. Maybe I should chalk it up to a lack of experience, and she’s learned better by now. Alison Roman, on the other hand. Now there’s a friend I wish I had in college. She knows quite well what to do with lentils…  

To hell with only a white onion and salt alone. Give me shallots, garlic, and burst cherry tomatoes! Give me a pool of olive oil and black pepper. Give me black lentils instead of green. Give me a hot skillet and time to get the grains all crispy. Give me red onion slices marinated in lime juice and fish sauce. Give me tender parsley. Give me a fried egg and chile oil! THIS, friends, is how to eat lentils. 

There’s so much more I could say about lentils. So many more anecdotes, stories, existential questions. Alison has a lot of lentil recipes, so I’ll reserve these for later. Spread the love, so to speak. 

Served with Ali Slagle’s Ginger-Lime Chicken.

30 recipes cooked, 195 to go.

Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Onions and Parsley by Alison Roman

I have something to admit. I made this recipe twice before writing about it. The first time, I failed. The potatoes weren’t boiled long enough and when I tried smashing them, they fell apart. (Alison suggests using a steamer basket but I don’t have one of those.) I still went to the effort of frying the broken potato bits, but they looked pretty sad and were not the right texture. 

The second time around I had better success. A few of the potatoes still fell apart during the smashing, but the majority held together. This time, I chose potatoes that were no larger than a golf ball, no exceptions. I let the potatoes boil for closer to 20 minutes, instead of 10-15, and let them cool for 3-4 minutes before smashing. I used the bottom of a wide water glass to flatten the potatoes, not a fork. Then I left the potatoes alone for longer while frying, and they thanked me for it - getting crispier than before. 

These potatoes are topped with parsley and sliced onions fried in butter. You can’t go wrong with onions fried in butter. You just can’t. Except if you burn them, but don’t do that! 

This dish can be served with just about anything. I made mine with Soy-Brined Halibut (post to come).

20 recipes cooked, 205 to go.

Also, how cute is this tiny potato!