This is a very popular summer dish in Greece, even though its origins are undoubtedly Turkish.
Imam bayaldi translates to ‘the fainting Imam’ and there are a number of different explanations for the name. The most widely accepted is that the Imam (a Muslim priest) married the daughter of a rich oil merchant, whose dowry was twelve bottles of the highest quality olive oil. For the first twelve nights of their married life she prepared eggplant stuffed with tomato, garlic, onion and parsley and braised in the olive oil. On the thirteenth night, no such dish graced their dinner table. When informed that there was no olive oil left, the Imam fainted.