Babaganoush (My Doctored Version)
Submitted by mkalberts
This sautéed babaganoush skips the grill and cooks cubed eggplant with onions, garlic, cumin, and coriander in a wok. Mashed with tahini and fresh lemon, it’s a smoky, chunky dip served with warm pita.
YIELD
3 cupsPREP
10 minCOOK
5 minREADY
15 minNot every babaganoush needs a grill or a charred-out oven.
This “doctored” version sautés cubed eggplant low and slow with onions, garlic, cumin, coriander, and a kick of crushed chili until everything goes tender and slightly caramelized.
A spoonful of tahini and a good squeeze of lemon pull it all together into a chunky, earthy dip that pairs beautifully with warm pita wedges.
It’s forgiving, flexible, and a killer appetizer alongside a curry spread.
Chef Tips
- Brown the eggplant slowly on low heat. Rushing it with high heat will steam rather than caramelize the cubes.
- Keep the texture slightly chunky. Over-processing in the food processor turns it into baby food. A few pulses is all you need.
- Dress it up with black olives, a lemon slice, and fresh parsley on top. The color won’t win beauty contests on its own.
- Taste and adjust the tahini-to-lemon ratio at the end. The balance between nutty and tart is what makes or breaks this dip.
Variations
- Add chopped celery and red bell pepper for extra crunch and sweetness.
- Stir in fresh cilantro or chopped scallions at the end for a greener, brighter finish.
- Sub peanut butter for tahini if you’re in a pinch (unorthodox, but it works in a casual setting).
Ingredients
Directions
handful of parsley or -cilantro -and/or scallion ends or -chives black olives, parsley sprigs -and a lemon slice to -decorate sesame paste.
i’ve heard of substituting peanut butter, but never tried it.
the variable amounts of ingredients depend on your taste and on the size of the eggplant.
try it without celery and red pepper and then you can decide if you want to use it next time.
sauté onions, (celery & red pepper) until starting to brown (i do it in a wok).
add eggplant and garlic, stir well, add spices (not the salt), stir again and on very low fire, sauté.
may drop some liquid, that’s all right, let it evaporate, and sauté slowly until everything is very tender.
keep checking, it’s better if it browns a little, but needs stirring so it doesn’t burn.
if it’s too dry, add a few tablespoon liquid at a time (i use vegetable broth, liquid from steaming veggies, or liquid from microwaving mushrooms, etc.
but water would probably do). add salt, tahini and lemon juice, pulse a few seconds at a time in food processor or mash with potato masher -- can be slightly lumpy, too smooth is pretty awful. add green stuff, pulse once or twice to chop coarsely and distribute or chop coarsely and stir in. it’s an ugly color, so i try to dress it up with a lemon slice, greens and black olives, seems to help. serve with quarters of pita bread or mini pitas, it’s finger food, a great appetizer with a curry meal
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