Learn how to make baba ganoush, the easy way! This delicious, fresh and flavorful Middle Eastern eggplant appetizer will surely become your favorite!
I love everything eggplant so I couldn’t miss making baba ganoush as part of my Middle Eastern cuisine challenge. 🙂 I made a similar recipe before, mutabal, which is basically baba ganoush without the herbs and tomatoes. 🙂
I saw that many bloggers online confuse baba ganoush with mutabal. They’re different. As mentioned above, mutabal is the simple version made with tahini which is usually found online as baba ganoush. The authentic baba ganoush is this one, with herbs and tomatoes and drizzled sometimes with pomegranate molasses (which I didn’t have). I love both of them, but this one tastes fresher so I can say it’s my favorite between the two. 🙂
This recipe is quite easy to make, though roasting the eggplants may be the annoying part. I added a link to the instructions below to Tori Avey’s blog where she shows different eggplant roasting methods. I use the oven flame roasting method because it makes the eggplants taste better, but you can use the oven one which is the easiest.
Fortunately, in my case, I didn’t even have to roast the eggplants. I bought them frozen, already roasted. You can “cheat” and do it this way too. You won’t feel any taste difference. 🙂
Hope you’ll like this delicious eggplant Middle Eastern recipe. Enjoy!
Baba Ganoush
Ingredients
- 2 eggplants medium
- ½ onion medium, diced
- 4 Tbsp mint fresh, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic mashed
- ½ lemon juiced
- 1 tomato diced
- 4 Tbsp parsley fresh, chopped
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- pomegranate molasses – optional, for drizzling
Instructions
- Roast the eggplants. I prefer to roast them on the flame as they taste better, rather than using the oven.
- Wash and dry the eggplants. Pierce them a few times with a fork. I have a gas range, so I roasted them directly on the flame. Add some aluminum foil on your stove before roasting the eggplants, to protect it from charred bits that may fall during the process.
- Turn the flame to medium. Roast the eggplants for 20 minutes and move them on each side so they roast all over every 5 minutes. If it’s a large eggplant you may need more time – about 30 minutes.
- Place the roasted eggplants on the cutting board and start peeling them carefully, using some tongs. They’re still hot! See here some other detailed methods for roasting eggplants.
- Put the eggplants into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Using a hand mixer on medium speed, start mixing everything (hand mixer, not a blender!!!). Mix well and serve with a drizzle of olive oil on top and some pita bread.
Nutrition
If you make this, please leave a review and rating if you liked this recipe! ★★★★★
Colliers
Wednesday 2nd of May 2018
I would never put the aubergine in flames as iT is very unhealty! I also cover the aubergine with salt to take out Any bitterness. I do grill them in the oven. Success
Ruxandra
Friday 11th of May 2018
Of course, you can also grill them in the oven. This is the authentic way of making this recipe, it gives it a smoky flavor, but you can roast the eggplants any way you like.
Kate
Saturday 10th of March 2018
Oh, thanks. Wasn't aware of the difference between baba ganoush and mutabal.
Do you have issues with your eggplant being to bitter? It happened to me once. I was advised to salt it up and leave for a while, but I should avoid salt, so this is not an option for me.
Ruxandra
Wednesday 14th of March 2018
I know about the salting method but I never had any issues with bitter eggplants. I always choose them small or medium-sized, with a rather small diameter. This way they have fewer seeds and are not bitter at all. Try choosing younger eggplants and simply roast them without the salting method. I never had any issues with them.