Zorba the Greek promised to make chorba soup for a new friend, but I believe baba ghanoush was a better choice. Although I was around in Zorba’s time, alas I was not invited to dinner. My first taste of baba ghanoush was at Jose Andres Washington, D.C. restaurant, Zaytinya.
This is a classic Greek dish similar to hummus, but made with smoky, roasted eggplant instead of chickpeas. It’s usually served with pita bread or chips and sometimes crudité, but we go with hot and spicy pork rinds. Hey, this is our Arkansas Razorback recipe and pork rinds beat the pants off pita bread!
Eggplant
I can’t speak for others, but I find this vegetable challenging. It’s not something you simply slice and eat because it has a naturally bitter taste, but when roasted it mellows and combined with tahini, olive oil and spices makes a wonderful dip.
How to Make Baba Ghanoush
Begin with two medium eggplant
Slice them in half, brush with olive oil and roast them on parchment paper, then finish on full broil for the last 5 minutes
Scoop out the flesh into a strainer and drain for 5-10 minutes to remove as much liquid as possible. Discard the liquid, wipe the bowl clean and return the eggplant to the bowl. Add the tahini and olive oil and mix vigorously with a fork until thoroughly incorporated.
Add the remaining ingredients and stir again until evenly mixed. Taste and adjust salt and red pepper if necessary.
Serve with hot and spicy pork rinds, your favorite cracker or pita bread! Print
Baba Ghanoush
Greek snack with eggplant, tahini, olive oil and spices.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 75
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
Ingredients
- 2 small to medium eggplants – about 2 pounds total
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 4 cloves garlic – smashed and chopped thoroughly
- 1 lemon – juiced
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 3/4 tsp salt – more to taste
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 TBL parsley – chopped
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- Hot and spicy pork rinds, pita chips or raw veggies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450
- Remove the caps from the eggplant, slice them in half and brush with olive oil
- Place them cut side down on a parchment covered cookie sheet
- Roast on the middle rack until the eggplant is shrunken and soft, about 40 minutes and the skin is charred, then turn the heat to full broil, 500 degrees for 5 more minutes. Remove and let the eggplant rest until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes
- Scoop the eggplant into a fine mesh strainer over a bowl, stir and allow to drain to remove as mush liquid as possible about 10 minutes
- Pour out the drippings, wipe the bowl clean and then return the cooked flesh back into the bowl
- Pick out any hard skin bits, add the tahini and olive oil and mix vigorously with a fork until incorporated
- Add the garlic, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, cumin, paprika and salt. Stir again until it is evenly mixed
- Taste and adjust salt and pepper if necessary
- Place in a serving bowl, drizzle olive oil over the baba ghanoush and garnish with parsley – optional
- Serve with your choice of pork rind, pita chips or raw veggies