Borani Banjan (Afghan Eggplant and Yogurt)
Aug 10, 2026
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Borani banjan is a classic Afghan dish of fried eggplant simmered in a spiced tomato sauce and served over a bed of cool garlicky yogurt. It is vegetarian, ready in under an hour, and it is the dish that turns eggplant skeptics into eggplant lovers.
I had it for the first time at an Afghan restaurant and I still remember how good it was. I ordered more bread twice so I could keep scraping the platter. This is my version of that plate.
The word borani comes from ancient Persian cooking and refers to any dish where cooked vegetables are served with yogurt. There are many of them across the region, from Afghan borani kadoo made with butternut squash to Persian borani esfenaj made with spinach. Banjan means eggplant, and this version is the one I go back to most.
Even Eggplant Skeptics Love This Dish
Most people who say they dislike eggplant have had it undercooked, bitter, or greasy. Borani banjan solves all three problems in the way it is built.
The eggplant gets fried first so it develops color and a deep, almost caramelized flavor. Then it finishes cooking in the tomato sauce, where it turns completely tender and soaks up the garlic, turmeric, and tomato. By the time it hits the platter there is nothing spongy or bitter left. The cool garlicky yogurt underneath cuts through all of it and keeps the dish from feeling heavy.
The yogurt deserves a note of its own. Use whole milk yogurt, because anything lighter goes thin and watery the moment the hot eggplant lands on it. And reach for dried mint rather than fresh. The two are not interchangeable here, since dried mint has a deeper, more concentrated flavor that holds its own against the garlic and the tomato sauce, while fresh mint would simply get lost.
How I Developed This Recipe
Get the eggplant right and the rest of the recipe takes care of itself. That is where most of my testing went.
- Good summer eggplant does not need salting. If your eggplant is fresh and not full of seeds, slice it and fry it right away. Salting is a fix for bitterness and excess moisture, and peak season eggplant has neither.
- Seedy or older eggplant does need it. Salt the slices, let them sweat for 20 to 30 minutes, then pat them completely dry before frying or roasting.
- Fry on high heat and stop early. You are only after color on both sides. The eggplant does not need to be cooked through because it finishes in the sauce. High heat gets you browning fast, before the slices have time to absorb much oil.
- Let the tomatoes fall apart before the eggplant goes back in. Fifteen minutes covered, mashing as you go, gives you a rustic sauce rather than chunks of tomato sitting in water. This is where the flavor of the dish lives.
- Roasting and air frying both work. I tested both. Roast at 425°F for 20 to 25 minutes or air fry at 400°F for 12 to 15 minutes. The texture is slightly different and slightly less rich, but the finished dish is still excellent. Frying is traditional and still my favorite.
How To Make Make Borani Banjan
Start by gathering all your eggplants. I love using Italian eggplants for this recipe since they are less seedy and a bit smaller. A little bit of turmeric goes a long way so make sure not to use more than what’s mentioned in the recipe card below.
Fry the eggplant slices in batches over high heat until golden on both sides, then drain on paper towels.
Cook the diced tomatoes in oil until soft, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Stir in the tomato paste, salt, pepper, turmeric, and water. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, mashing the tomatoes into a rustic sauce.
Nestle the fried eggplant into the sauce, top with the sliced tomatoes, spoon sauce over everything, cover, and cook another 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir the yogurt with garlic, salt, and dried mint, then spread it across a serving platter.
Spoon the warm eggplant and sauce over the yogurt and serve right away with bread.
What to Serve With Borani Banjan
In Afghan homes this is served with naan, a flatbread close to barbari. Warm homemade pita bread or lavash both work beautifully. Bread is not a side here, it is the utensil. You want to drag it through the yogurt, the sauce, and the eggplant in one motion.
It also holds its own on a mezze table or as a vegetarian main with rice. If you want to keep exploring eggplant, baba ganoush and karniyarik take the same vegetable in two completely different directions.
Borani Banjan (Afghan Eggplant with Yogurt)
Ingredients
To Fry The Eggplant
- 1/4 cup neutral oil , such as avocado oil, for frying
- 2 Italian eggplants, sliced into ½ inch rounds
Tomato Sauce
- 2 tbsp neutral oil, such as avocado oil
- 4 tomatoes, finely diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp turmeric, to taste
- 1 cup water
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
Yogurt Sauce
- 2 cups whole milk plain yogurt
- 1 garlic clove, grated or minced
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1½ tsp dried mint
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Fry the eggplant slices in batches until golden brown on both sides, this would take about 5-7 minutes. Do not crowd the pan. There is no need for the eggplants to cook completely at this stage. Transfer to a cooling rack placed on a baking sheet and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced tomatoes and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until they begin to break down. Add the minced garlic and cook 1 to 2 minutes more until fragrant.
- Stir in the tomato paste, salt, black pepper, turmeric, and water. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes, mashing the tomatoes with the back of a spoon as they soften, until you have a thick rustic sauce.
- Arrange the fried eggplant in the sauce and top with the sliced tomatoes. Spoon some sauce over the top, cover, and cook another 10 to 15 minutes until the eggplant is very tender and the tomato slices have softened.
- In a bowl, stir together the yogurt, grated garlic, salt, and dried mint until smooth.
- Spread the yogurt across a serving platter. Spoon the warm eggplant and tomato sauce over the yogurt and serve immediately with warm bread.
Notes
- Fresh summer eggplant does not need salting. If your eggplant is seedy or out of season, salt the slices, let them sweat 20 to 30 minutes, then pat completely dry before frying.
- Fry over high heat for color only. The eggplant finishes cooking in the sauce.
- To roast instead of fry, brush the slices with oil and roast at 425°F for 20 to 25 minutes. To air fry, cook at 400°F for 12 to 15 minutes.
- Use whole milk yogurt for the base. Low fat yogurt is too thin.
- Dried mint and fresh mint are not interchangeable in this recipe.
- The eggplant and sauce keep in the fridge for up to 4 days. Assemble with the yogurt just before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
