Greek · Authentic-ish Greek
Melitzanes Imam
368 kcal a serving, against 662 for the traditional version. That is 294 kcal off, or 44%, with 15.2g of protein. Serves 4. 75 minutes.
What the traditional version is
Whole aubergines slashed open and shallow-fried in huge amounts of olive oil until they completely collapse. A sweet stuffing of sliced onions, garlic and tomatoes cooked down in even more oil. The assembled dish is then baked in yet more oil until the whole thing turns into a melting, oily puddle.
What changed, and what each change costs
250g of olive oil down to 25g
Aubergine absorbs everything you put in the pan. Baking the halves with a tiny brush of oil forces them to soften without drinking a pint of fat.
What it costs you. You'll lose that unbelievably rich, saturated texture. The aubergine holds its shape and bites back rather than dissolving on your tongue.
Adding tinned chickpeas to the filling
The original is just vegetables and fat, so there's almost zero nutrition. Folding chickpeas into the tomato and onion gives you a proper hit of substance and turns a side dish into a main.
What it costs you. Call it a chunky bake rather than a purist Imam Bayildi anymore and you'll be about right. You lose the intense, pure focus on the sweet vegetables.
Finishing with feta
A little bit of sharp, salty cheese on top brings back some of the richness you've lost by stripping the fat out of the pan.
What it costs you. Feta changes the flavour profile entirely, pulling it away from the deeply sweet, caramelised original.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 662 | 368 |
| Protein | 4.2g | 15.2g |
| Fat | 63.2g | 14.8g |
| Saturated fat | 8.8g | 4.7g |
| Carbohydrate | 25.2g | 48.8g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 0.6g | 4.1g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Greek prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. milk.
The method is in the book
A fantastic trade. You lose the legendary pool of oil that made the imam faint, but you get a brilliant, sharp, savoury stuffed aubergine. It holds together perfectly on the plate, delivers wonderful Greek flavours, and actually fills you up without sending you to sleep.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Greek, along with 56 more. Buy the paperback