Khoresh Bademjan is a Persian stew made with chicken, Japanese eggplant, and sour grapes and it is one of my mom’s staples that I grew up with. “Khoresh” translates to “Stew” and “Bademjan” translates to “Eggplant.”

Top view of cooked eggplant stew with chicken in red sauce.

🌟Why you’ll love this recipe

  • This dish is a must-try if you’re a fan of Persian cuisine. The tartness from the sour grapes brings a classic, Persian ingredient to light. The combination of tomato sauce with a hint of sour taste from the sour grapes make for a delicious savory stew!
  • This is eggplant hearty stew infused with incredible flavor from turmeric and saffron. You should make this stew if you’re looking to experiment with some amazing, yet less common ingredients like Japanese eggplant, and sour grapes.

🧾Ingredients in this recipe

Top view of labeled ingredients on a white countertop including eggplant, chicken, and sour grapes.
  • Sour grapes – Sour or unripe grapes, also known as gooreh, are only in season once a year. I like to buy them in bulk, stem them, and freeze them so I can use them all year round. If you cannot find sour grapes, you can substitute dried limes in bademjan. This substitution is commonly done, and you will be able to find dried limes all year round.
  • Japanese eggplant – small or Japanese eggplant work well in this recipe. The Japanese eggplant work best because they are along and skinny, making them cook all the way through much faster. I also like the seed to flesh ratio the best.
  • saffron – can be found in Middle Eastern markets and online.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

👩‍🍳How to Make This Recipe

Before and after chicken is cooked with diced onion and spices.
  • Fry the eggplants in canola oil until very tender. Set aside on paper towels.
  • Saute the onion in the canola oil over medium-high heat until translucent. Add the chicken, turmeric, salt, and pepper and saute until brown on all sides.

Why brown the chicken?

Browning the chicken before adding the stew liquid seals in the juices in the meat, and helps create the fall-off-the-bone tenderness.

White pot of chicken stew with green sour grapes.
  • Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and sour grapes (or dried limes). Bring to boil. Lower to simmer. Simmer for 90 minutes.
Hand pouring steeped saffron into pot of red stew.
  • Before serving, add the eggplants and simmer for an additional 15 minutes. Then, add the saffron and water brew and mix.

Serve khoresh bademjan with basmati rice.

🍲 More Delicious, Warming Stews

If you like this Persian recipe, be sure to check out all my Persian recipes here. And I’m sure you’ll love one of these other dishes, too:

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Top view of cooked eggplant stew with chicken in red sauce.
Author: Candice Walker

Khoresh Bademjan

5 from 3 votes
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Khoresh Bademjan is a Persian stew made with chicken, Japanese eggplant, and sour grapes and it is one of my mom's staples that I grew up with.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time2 hours
Total Time2 hours 15 minutes
Course: Main, Main Course
Cuisine: Persian
Diet: Gluten Free, Kosher
Servings: 6
Calories: 785kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 lbs. chicken if using a whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
  • 5 Japanese eggplants sliced in half lengthwise
  • 1 onion diced
  • 16 oz. tomato sauce can
  • 3 oz. tomato paste
  • 1/2 cup sour grapes*
  • 2 tbsp canola oil
  • 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 pinch saffron brewed in 3 tbsp hot water
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions

  • Fry the eggplants in canola oil until very tender. Set aside on paper towels.
  • Sautee the onion in the canola oil over medium-high heat until translucent. Add the chicken, turmeric, salt, and pepper and sautee until brown on all sides.
  • Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and sour grapes (or dried limes). Bring to boil. Lower to simmer. Simmer for 90 minutes.
  • Before serving, add the eggplants and simmer for an additional 15 minutes. Then, add the saffron and water brew and mix.
  • Serve with basmati rice.

Video

Notes

* You can substitute 3 dried limes for the sour grapes since sour grapes are only in season once a year. You can find both at middle-easter markets.

Nutrition

Calories: 785kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 60g | Fat: 51g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 227mg | Sodium: 725mg | Potassium: 1448mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 1010IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 69mg | Iron: 4mg
Did you try this recipe?I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a Review to let us know how it came out, if you have a successful substitution or variation, or anything else.

6 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This totally reminded me of my mom’s version. I’m so impressed with myself and will be sharing this one with my family.

    Reply

  2. Was wondering if you had any recommendations for making this vegetarian / vegan? One time I tried with mushrooms but the khoresh was too watery. Thank you!

    Reply

    1. Hi Sadaf, Great question! I’ve been testing some vegetarian options for different stews, and this one has been tough. So far, I’ve been the most successful for bademjan with some seared tofu and adding some vegetable bouillon before the simmer. I then add roasted vegetables like green beans and potatoes after about an hour. I then simmer it with the lid off until enough water has evaporated. It isn’t perfect yet, but I’ll let you know when it’s there. Feel free to give this a try in the meantime.
      Mushrooms are a great option for ghormeh sabzi. I’ve been working on that one, too.

      Reply

  3. I love Persian food and am so excited to find the recipes I loved so much. Do you have a recipe for my favorite – Kask a bademjoon?

    Reply

    1. Thank you for the recipe request, Laurie! I’m so glad you’re liking my recipes.
      I do have a recipe, but it isn’t on the blog yet. I learn the recipes without measurements because that’s how my mom and grandmother cook, and it takes me time to get them to a place that’s blog-worthy. But here is the gist…
      Fry 1 sliced onion (the way I do it in the ash reshteh recipe). Sometimes I’ll fry up about a tablespoon of dried mint for this dish, too. Set them aside.
      Peel 6 small Chinese eggplants, cut them into 1-cm thick pieces and sear them in oil seasoning with salt, pepper, turmeric (optional). Once they are golden brown (don’t have to be cooked through) let them sit on some paper towels.
      Add about a tablespoon of tomato paste and some water. Cook for a few minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Mix in kashk and top with the onions/mint.
      Hope this helps! I’ll try and get a good recipe for this dish up before Spring.

      Reply
5 from 3 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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