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Iranian

Kashk-e bademjan

Vegetarian

کشک بادمجان · Kashk-e bādemjān

Soft fried aubergine mashed with caramelised onion, garlic and turmeric, swirled with tangy kashk and topped with mint oil and walnuts. A favourite Persian starter.

Kashk-e bademjan is an Iranian dip, ready in about 1 hour and made with eggplant and kashk. It serves 6 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking
A serving of Kashk bademjan
Representative photo. Sina Salimi / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-SA-4.0
Prep
15 min
Cook
45 min
Total
1 h
Serves
6
Level
Easy
Calories
224

Ingredients

6 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Fry the aubergine (opens in a new tab) slices in 4 tbsp oil until golden on both sides and soft (or brush with oil and roast at 220 °C for 25 minutes).

    Food safety: Hot oil spits; lay slices away from you.

  2. Step 2

    In the remaining oil, fry the onions (opens in a new tab) until deep golden. Lift out a third for garnish. Add the garlic (opens in a new tab) and turmeric (opens in a new tab) to the pan and fry 1 minute.

    • 15 min
    • medium heat
    Onions frying golden in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Magda Ehlers on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Add the aubergine (opens in a new tab), water, salt and pepper (opens in a new tab), mash roughly and cook gently for 10 minutes until thick and jammy.

    • 10 min
    • low heat
    Potatoes being mashed
    How it looks · Photo: Mateusz Feliksik on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Stir in two-thirds of the kashk (opens in a new tab). Spread on a plate and top with the rest of the kashk, the reserved onions (opens in a new tab), walnuts (opens in a new tab) and saffron (opens in a new tab).

    • 2 min

  5. Step 5

    Warm 1 tsp oil, take off the heat and stir in the dried mint (opens in a new tab) for a few seconds, then drizzle over the top.

    • 1 min
    • low heat

About this dish

Origin
Iran · Well documentedMore food from Iran
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Snack · Dips & spreads · Appetizers & starters
Cooking method
Pan-fried, Sautéed
Taste
savoury, tangy, garlicky, creamy
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No gluten ingredients · Low-carb · High-fibre
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Egg-free · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · High-fibre · DASH-style · Carb-conscious
Without the optional extras: No nut ingredientsWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead
Cook more with
Eggplant · Kashk · Onion · Garlic · Turmeric · Dried mint
Techniques
Roasting · Pan-frying · Sautéing

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom kashk
  • Contains, can be adapted: Tree nutsfrom walnuts

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

224 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 323 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 9%
  • Carbohydrate 33%
  • Fat 58%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy224 kcal69 kcal
Protein5.2 g1.6 g
Carbohydrate19.5 g6 g
Net carbohydrate11.8 g3.7 g
Sugars10.6 g3.3 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre7.7 g2.4 g
Fat15.3 g4.8 g
Saturated fat1.7 g0.5 g
Trans fat0.1 g0 g
Cholesterol3 mg1 mg
Sodium405 mg126 mg
Salt equivalent1 g0.3 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
636 mg
Calcium
68 mg
Iron
1.1 mg
Magnesium
42 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
4 µg
Vitamin C
9 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0.2 µg
Folate (DFE)
59 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: walnuts, saffron.
  • Kashk: Whole-milk Greek yogurt used as a stand-in; liquid kashk is a fermented whey/yogurt product that is tangier and saltier.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Kashk is salty — add it, then taste before adding more salt.

Common mistakes

  • Under-cooking the aubergine — it must be completely soft to mash into a jammy dip.

Serve with

  • Serve warm with lavash or barbari bread.

Storage

  • Keeps 3 days refrigerated (store toppings separately).

Reheating

  • Warm gently in a pan; add fresh toppings.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Goes with

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

  • Eggplant, peeled and cut into thick slices3 piece · 1350 g
  • Kashk150 g
Used in steps 1, 3, 4

Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

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