Aubergine caviar (Baklazhannaya ikra)

1. Dice the aubergines, salt them and leave for 20 minutes, then squeeze out the bitter juices.

2. Dip the tomatoes into boiling water, peel and chop them; deseed and dice the pepper, grate the carrot and finely chop the onion.

3. In a heavy-based pan, sweat the onion in half the oil for 5 minutes, add the carrot and pepper and cook for another 5 minutes.

4. In a frying pan, fry the aubergine cubes in the remaining oil for 8-10 minutes until golden, then add them to the pan.

5. Add the tomatoes, tomato purée, sugar and crushed garlic, season with pepper and simmer uncovered over low heat, stirring often, for 30-40 minutes until it cooks down to a thick, spreadable mass; mash it lightly with a fork at the end.

6. Cool completely and serve sprinkled with fresh parsley, with toasted bread – it's even better the next day.

Tip: "Poor man's caviar" is a favourite cold dish of Soviet cooking; it can also be put into sterilised jars for the winter.