Georgian Baked Fish with Eggplant and Pomegranate Sauce

(Tevzi Badrijanit Brotseulis Tsvenshi)

1 red snapper or striped bass (about 4-6 pounds)head and tail left on (we used Cod Fillets and it worked really well, i think just aslong as the fish is white flakey and mild it will work well), cleaned, rinsed and patted dry OR 1 PACKAGE FIRM TOFU
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, crushed in a garlic press
1 cup olive oil, or more as needed
2 medium-sized eggplants / aubergines (abvbout 1/2 pound each), sliced 1/2 inch thick
3 cups fresh or bottled pomegranate juice ( we used some Odwalla bs because Super Stop and Shop didn't seem to have Pom)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 375F. Rub the fish or DRAINED, PRESSED AND SLICED TOFU with salt, pepper, the crushed garlic, and 3 tablespoons of the olive oil; place in a baking dish. Let stand for 15 minutes.

Bake the fish until opaque througout, 10 minutes for every inch of the thickness of the fish, measured at the thickest part -- 40 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the fish. The fish should be browned and crispy on top. (funny part of the story here is that we actually started a grease fire on the pan in the oven becuase we went for a BROIL rather than bake, and with the smoke detector freaking out i was running around muttering "OMG, OMG" Carmelle mean while was cool as a cuke, just letting it burn itself out... this is all in the middle of the Conneticuit woods HA!)

Meanwhile place the eggplant / aubergine slices in a colander and sprinkle them with 2 tablespoons of salt. Let stand for 30 minutes. Rinse the eggplant thoroughly and pat dry with paper towels.

Pour the remaining oil into a heavy skillet. If the oil is less than 1 inch deep, add more oil. (The C+D version also takes it a little easy on the oil becuae an inch of oil in a pan is terrifying)
Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Fry the eggplant slices, a few at a time, until deep golden on both sides, about 15 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Reduce the pomegranate juice over high heat to about 1 1/3 cups, taking about 10-15 minutes. Stir in the onion, minced garlic, red pepper flakes, basil and cilantro, and season with salt. Allow the sauce to cool to a warm temperature.

Serve the dish surrounded by eggplant slices and pass the pomegranate sauce in a sauceboat.

(we just layered it in a tupperware container and poured the sauce all over. SRSLY this was SO delish I wish I had known about the wonders of Georgian food in the Spiz... i can't help but say sorry guys for not providing this fantasy of flavors)