Starters & Meze
Ajvar
Every autumn the whole street smells of roasting peppers. This is our jar of summer, kept for winter.
Method
Roast the peppers over a flame or in a hot oven until the skins blister and blacken all over.
Rest them in a covered pot for 20 minutes, then peel and deseed. Do the same with the aubergine.
Grind the peppers and aubergine through a mincer, or chop very finely.
Cook the mixture in a wide pan with the oil over low heat, stirring constantly, for 1½–2 hours until thick enough that a spoon stands a moment before falling.
Season with salt and vinegar, jar while boiling hot, and seal.
A note from Mama:
Stir with a wooden spoon and never walk away — ajvar burns the second you stop believing in it.