Aijvar or Aijvar is a seasonal dish; an appetizer; a relish of roasted eggplant-sweet-pepper mixture made principally from red bell peppers, with
eggplant, garlic and chile pepper. String
beans can also be combined to make
Ajvar.
Ajvar is predominantly popular in the Balkans, in countires like Macedonia, Croatia, Serbia and other former parts of Yugoslavia and also in
Greece. It is always made in late summer and early autumn, just after the
paprika harvest and when many households bottle their own Ajvar for use throughout the winter
season. It is enjoyed as a winter
food.
Depending on ingredients and the amount of added
chili peppers, it can be
sweet, piquant or very hot. Ajvar can be consumed as a bread
spread on
slices of white bread or flat
bread with chunks of Feta
cheese, an addition in sandwiches, as a condiment. It is often used as a side dish with grilled or roasted
meats, as an
appetizer or
salad.
The name Ajvar comes from
Turkish "havyar", which means salted roe. Preparation of Ajvar is somewhat difficult, as it involves plenty of manual labor, especially for
peeling the
ingredients.
Traditionally, it is prepared in early autumn, when the bell peppers are most abundant, conserved in glass jars, and consumed throughout the year, although in most households stocks do not last up until the spring, when fresh salads start to emerge again.
The peppers and
eggplants are baked whole on a plate on open fire, plate of a wood stove, or in the
oven. Baked peppers must briefly rest in a closed dish, so that they get cooler and the
flesh sets apart from the skin. Then, the skin is carefully peeled off and seeds removed. The pepper is ground in a mill or chopped in tiny pieces - this variant is often referred to as Pindur. Finally, the mush is stewed for a couple of hours in large pots, with added sunflower oil and
garlic, in order to condense and reduce the
water, as well as to enhance later conservation.
Salt and optional
vinegar are added at the end and the hot mush is poured directly into glass jars which are immediately sealed. The best Ajvar is produced domestically, as only the manual peeling and seed removal ensures clear
taste without slightly bitter influence of the
pepper skin.
Ajvar is also called Aijvar and is pronounced "eye-vahr".
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