Baba Ganoush – Middle Eastern Eggplant Dip – no added oil

The trick to making rock star tasting Baba Ganoush is to thoroughly roast your eggplants (aubergine) over a flame. I find this really easy to do in my barbeque. You can find instructions here.

Thoroughly cooking the aubergine ensures that it has a silky texture. and the flame ensures a smokey flavour. Both create magic in the finished dip.

This dip is super versatile too, and can be added to dishes to create texture and taste. Add it to a grazing platter for an interesting change from hummus. Dollop it on your lunchtime bowl to add moisture to the mix. And you can treat it like a thick dressing when assembling salads.

Using baba ganoush as a dressing in a layered salad:

• In a low wide bowl, scatter chopped lettuce, or other crisp greens across the bottom
• Dollop some baba ganoush in teaspoon sized drops across the lettuce
• Layer on other interesting vegetables, depending on what you have. You could try:
  • roasted kumara or potato
  • cauliflower or broccoli florets (cooked or raw)
  • cooked chickpeas or white beans
• Then dollop on more baba ganoush across the vegetables to finish
  • if you want to make it dinner party fancy, sprinkle some dry roasted pine nuts and/or pomegranate seeds (as in the photo)