Recipe update from 06/06/2007
In the summer in Greece, this Greek dip can often be found at tavernas among the several Mezedes (appetizers) ordered by a group of friends and it’s most definitely on the table at home for family & friends. The “must-do” for this recipe is char-roasting the eggplant in a gas or charcoal grill to get the smokiness.
This past Easter, I lit some charcoal to grill my array of meats to accompany our lamb. Don’t be shy, throw the eggplant right onto the white-hot coals. They will impart a wonderful smoked flavour to your eggplant.
When I order this from a Greek taverna, I’m let down when I taste that the eggplant was roasted in the oven. FAIL.
Some variations for this dish is to include some chopped walnuts, some crumbled Feta, chopped scallions or even some roasted peppers.
Some of you might be familiar with Baba ghanoush, which is fine but this Greek eggplant dip focuses on the the eggplant, the smoky eggplant in particular, the garlic, olive oil and some chopped fresh parsley for balance and freshness.
Melitzanosalata (Eggplant Salad)
You will need a BBQ (either charcoal or gas grill) and a mortar & pestle to prepare this dish and here are the ingredients:
* 1 medium to large Italian eggplant
* 1 large clove of garlic
* extra virgin olive oil
* coarse sea salt to taste
* 2 tbsp of chopped flat-leaf parsley
* Small squeeze of lemon juice (prevents the eggplant from turning brown)
1) Your BBQ/Grill is on and you place an eggplant (on direct heat) that’s been pricked with a fork a few times all around. The eggplant should take about 20-30 minutes (depending how hot your grill/BBQ is) and should be rotated until all of the skin has been charred.
2) When the eggplant is done roasting, let it rest for about 10 minutes and take to mashing your clove of garlic in some coarse sea salt in the mortar & pestle. Your garlic should be a fine mash.
3)Take a knife and cut the eggplant open, vertically and peel open it to reveal it’s light green-yellow meat. With a spoon, scrape out the meat and place it into your mortar , add a squeeze of lemon juice and mash the eggplant & incorporate the garlic with the eggplant.
4) Now you will add, slowly, the olive oil to the eggplant while still mixing using the pestle. For one eggplant, usually 1/4 to a 1/3 cup of olive oil is sucked up by the eggplant.
5) Add the chopped parsley to the eggplant and adjust for seasoning and plate with a parsley garnish. Depending on my mood, sometimes I add some crumbled Feta cheese into the mix!
Get some crusty bread and dip away!
52 Responses
Really appetizing! a great recipe!
Cheers,
Rosa
My husband’s favourite dip!!
I make it as you do, but with vinegar instead of lemon juice!!
With some crusty fresh bread …. just perfect!!
I am going to try this one with the eggplants from the garden again. There is a differnce between he grill and oven for sure.
get some crusty bread and dip away is right! man that looks so good!
Love it, thanks.
Probably my favourite food in the entire world. I could eat it by the spoonful.
This on reminds me of home, Tho mine is way far away from yours.. from the part of India i am from, we do this, & for the garnish we use onion, green pepper, fresh cilantro & mustard oil. the distance in miles, but the proximity in food always amazes me.
that sounds and looks delicious! i think i would definitely love the addition of the feta. what a yummy warm weather treat.
I am going to try this… it sounds SO good. I think it would be great with some feta. I made your roasted potatoes last night and then made a potato salad with them today, adding red onion and olives with a yogurt/mayo mixture for it. Delicious! I never knew potatoes with lemon on them would smell so good while roasting!
I can’t wait to try this. I love anything and everything roasted.
I’m not a big eggplant fan, but this sounds pretty good!
I agree. The smokiness is an essential part of this dish. Bring on the crusty bread!
I absolutely love aubergine puree like this one! I love that you have added parsley & lemon!
MMMMMMMM…..Peter!
Looks so so yummy delicous.
Great recipe — I love the flavor of smoked eggplant but never think of throwing eggplant on the grill. Do you oil the grill (or the eggplant) to keep it from sticking?
thank you for the photo of the cooked eggplant. I wouldn’t have been sure about leaving it on the fire for so long!
Lydia, no oil – you’re charring them much like peppers. They are easy to turn onto each side.
All I need is some pita and I am there Peter:D
This looks so good.
And good to learn the charring can be done with a gas as well as a charcoal barbeque – tough summer fire restrictions here mean often gas is the only allowed choice. (Hey – i support the strong fire restrictions, my home in an inner city Wellington suberb is surrounded by bush)
Lovely way to eat eggplant – thank you Peter for another foody encouragement. Happy Spring!
I have to agree about the smokiness that the fire gives…there is just no comparison!!!
Fabulous! I just got an eggplant in my store and was wondering what to do with it. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Oh I bet I would love that!
I love eggplant, and this simple combination looks really appetizing. Greetings from Barcelona.
LOVE Eggplant salad, my family love it so much that it become a staple in our house hold.
Cheers,
elra
Wow! I rarely eat eggplant, but I couldn’t resist this, especially topped with some feta.
I’ve always love to char the eggplant first to get a nice smoky flavor to the eggplant pulp. I love the fact that you took the time to take a photo of the charred eggplant. ha sunny days are back, it’s time to get the bbq out!
Hi Peter, i was waiting for this recipe. I can tell it must be so delicious. And BTW, we have bought a new BBQ for our terrace, will be easier for me to try your recipes : )
Eggplant salads are so simple and yet so good!
i think i’m making this on tuesday…
You are so right about the flavor difference between oven roasted and grillled eggplant. Your version looks delish.
Grilled is the only way I can stand eggplant. I will happily take it with some feta too please.
If I have the charcoal grill going it is amazing what gets thrown on the grill all in the name of I have heat and must use it all up.
Nicely done as usual and keep the grill happy Spring dishes flowing!
i like baba ghanoush, but i agree that this sounds even better. the charred eggplant is surprisingly beautiful to my eyes this morning. :)
Looks really yummy!
My single most favourite ingredient in Mediterranean/Middle Eastern cooking is eggplant! I love everything they do with it, and how good they are are highlighting the many flavours and textures that can be extracted from this awsome veg. Thankfully I’ve got plenty of Mediterranean family backing me up and giving me yummy eggplant recipes! This looks amazing, I just see myself eating the entire batch in one sitting!!! Thanks for sharing it :)
I typically don’t care for eggplant, since I really don’t like how squishy it can be. But I tried Baba Ganoush at a new Middle Eastern restaurant in my neighborhood and LOVED it. It immediately went on my list of things to make! Thanks for the recipe!
This looks and sounds like you need to come to my house and make this! I am an eggplant fiend.
I have missed a lot.All I can say to every dish is yes, yes, yes!
Up to step three it is identical to ours; then it is a little different; well my aunt Wadad, who makes the best baba ghanouj in all of Beirut, hardly uses any tahini; she says it masks the taste of the eggplant; my question is how can you get away with just one clove of garlic? That dip does look awfully good.
Thanks for this recipe, I tried it yesterday and it had the same taste and the ones we had in Greece. We’ve just come back from our holidays in Mykonos and it reminded to us.
The only thing I would mention is that I prefer not to mash the eggplant. I prefer mine chunky. Also, I would chuck the crusty bread on the charcoals as well to toast, and drizzle some olive oil on it.
hey there I’m trying this now as i type….
What i want to know is how long can this keep in the fridge ?
What an amazing recipe! I would never have imagined this. Thank you.