If you're looking to create a vegetarian meze that's packed with flavor, this baba ganoush and salsa recipe is wonderful.
The charred skin of the eggplant gives smoky depth to this Middle Eastern favorite, while cherry tomatoes make the salsa beautifully sweet.
Served with lightly charred flatbread or raw veg, this is a barbecue recipe with a difference.
Ingredients
- Serves 4
- 2 large eggplants
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 6 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1⁄2 tsp each salt and black pepper
- 2 sprigs oregano, baby basil or mint, chopped
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)
- For the salsa
- 150g cherry tomatoes
- 2 spring onions
- 1⁄2-1 small green chilli
- Juice of 1 lime
- Salt and black pepper
- To serve
- Guacamole, griddled halloumi slices and flat bread
The Homes & Gardens method
- Pre-heat the grill.
- To make the baba ganoush, fork-prick the eggplants, place on a baking sheet and grill slowly for 15-20 minutes. Turn and grill for 30 minutes more until the skins are charred all over. Leave to cool, then drain off any juices.
- Roughly chop the eggplant and discard the stems. Put in a food processor with the tahini, garlic and seasonings, and blitz in six or eight sustained bursts to create a messy purée. If you can't find tahini at the store, Amazon's top-rated buy is Baron's USDA Organic Tahini.
- Stir in the chopped herbs and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds, if liked.
- To make the salsa, roughly chop the tomatoes, spring onions and chilli, then blitz for four seconds or so in a food processor – it should still be coarse. Add lime juice and seasonings to taste.
Serve the baba ganoush and salsa with the accompaniments. This might be chopped, raw vegetables, such as carrots, peppers and cucumber; we think it goes brilliantly with our garlic and herb flatbreads, too.