Baba ganoush recipe

Made with affordable Arabic ingredients and popular across the Middle East, the humble appearance of baba ganoush belies its deliciousness. There are three golden rules to making it well: char the aubergines over an open flame; drain the flesh; and balance your flavours with care. Here's more information on the history of baba ganoush.

Ingredients

  • 3 large aubergines
  • 1 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tbsp natural yoghurt
  • 1 lemon, juice only
  • 1 garlic clove (crushed)
  • 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
  • 3 large aubergines
  • 1 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tbsp natural yoghurt
  • 1 lemon, juice only
  • 1 garlic clove (crushed)
  • 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
  • 3 large aubergines
  • 1 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tbsp natural yoghurt
  • 1 lemon, juice only
  • 1 garlic clove (crushed)
  • 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
To serve
  • 5 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pinch za'atar
  • 0 flatbread
  • 0.2 fl oz extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pinch za'atar
  • 0 flatbread
  • 0 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pinch za'atar
  • 0 flatbread

Details

  • Cuisine: Middle Eastern
  • Recipe Type: Side
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Preparation Time: 30 mins
  • Cooking Time: 0 mins
  • Serves: 4

Step-by-step

  1. With a fork or prong, pierce the top of each aubergine at the head. Hold them over as big an open flame as (safely) possible and let them blacken all over. This should take about ten minutes, and the aubergines will be left looking charred, flaky and soft.
  2. Peel the black skins from the flesh and discard. You will be left with little bit of black skin, but try to keep that to a minimum. Now, with a knife and fork or - even better - a potato masher, break the flesh apart. Importantly, don't put it in a blender. Baba ganoush needs to maintain some of the aubergines' texture and fleshy consistency.
  3. Next, leave the skinned flesh in a sieve over the sink for 5-10 minutes so excess liquid from the cooked aubergines will drain off.
  4. Put the flesh into a bowl and mix in the tahini, yoghurt, lemon and garlic. Some recipes don't use yoghurt, but I personally prefer to balance out the sesame strength of tahini with some light creaminess. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Lastly, drizzle a little of your best extra virgin olive oil on top so that it makes little wells between lumps of aubergine. Sprinkle with za'atar mix and enjoy with good quality fresh flatbread.

More Middle Eastern treats

Jo Pratt's chilli and chickpea bites

Claudia Roden's orange and almond cake recipe

Rachel de Thample's Egyptian salad

 

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