Eggplants Around the World: Moroccan Zaalouk

Aubergine, brinjal, melongene, garden egg, guinea squash, baingan, melanzana… whatever name you call them, eggplants are awesome. Wikipedia tells me that eggplants, being the night shades that they are, are a relative of the tobacco plant, which might explain my addiction to them (although you’d need to eat thirty pounds in order to get the nicotine equivalent of one cigarette, I still think they are crave-worthy, and certainly better for you!) I was looking for a new eggplant recipe to try and came upon a few really cool dishes from other cultures, so this week I’m going to do three posts about eggplant recipes from different ethnic cuisines. It seems that just about every corner of the globe has their own signature dish to showcase the giant purple berry. First up is a tomato/eggplant dip from Morocco, which can be eaten hot or cold. It’s spicy and rich, perfect for scooping onto pita chips or flatbreads. You can also serve it hot over some rice, or rolled up in a lavash wrap with some shredded cabbage for a quick meal. One generous serving of this yummy spread is about 150 calories.

Moroccan Zaalouk

Makes 3 meal sized servings, 6 appetizer sized servings

1tbs olive oil

1 eggplant

3 large ripe tomatoes

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

2 tsp harissa

2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cumin 

1/8 tsp cayenne

6 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/3 cup fresh cilantro and parsley, mixed

Juice from 1 lemon wedge

3/4 cup water

Peel the eggplant and tomatoes and chop them up. 

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium/high heat and add the eggplant, tomatoes, and spices, stirring occasionally.

After about 20 minutes, add the garlic and continue to cook, stirring. If the mixture starts to stick and dry out, add a splash of water, only 1/4 cup at a time as needed. 

After another 15 minutes, add the cilantro, parsley, and lemon and cook for 5 more minutes. Smash the eggpplant and tomoto a bit with the back of a fork or potato masher to break them down. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Garnish with a little olive oil and fresh chopped parsley if desired. It would also make a complimentary side dish to Moroccan Spiced Stew.

Ratatouille Spiral

As visually striking as this is, the flavors are humble, mellow, and comforting. I made this for my mom’s birthday, and was so excited to see even the veggiephobes going back for seconds. The best part is, this ratatouille spiral is easier than it looks! Well, if you have a mandolin that is, otherwise it’s still easy but will take a bit longer. We served this with lemony saffron rice, crusty french bread, sausages, and a salad of arugula, strawberries, pine nuts, and balsamic reduction. I also served the ratatouille with some homemade cashew cream sauce for drizzling over the top. Overall a nice meal and not overly rich! You could even make this in a pie crust for an extra special ratatouille pie. When choosing your vegetables, try to find ones that are pretty similar in diameter, which is why the recipe calls for a Chinese eggplant, because it is similar in size to the zucchini and yellow squash. You can use any kind of eggplant you like, but you will want to cut your slices in half or thirds to be uniform with the zucchini and yellow squash. This photo was before it went in the oven, because afterwards, it got gobbled up too fast for pictures. (And it looked about the same.)

Ratatouille Spiral

makes about 6 servings

3 tbs olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic

1 can pureed tomatoes

2 tbs tomato paste

1 tsp Italian seasonings

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 tsp coconut sugar (or brown sugar)

A few fresh basil leaves, chopped

2 Chinese eggplants

2 zucchinis

2 yellow squashes

2 tbs olive oil

Salt and pepper

1 tsp fresh thyme

Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat, add the onions and sauté until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and saute 1 more minute, then add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Simmer for about 5 minutes, adding a splash of water if it starts to stick. Pour sauce into the bottom of a 9” pie pan.

Next cut the woody end pieces off of all your veggies. Set the mandolin to slightly less that 1/4 inch (super duper thin!) and get to slicing- long ways.

If you don’t have a mandolin, that’s ok, just cut very thin slices with a sharp knife. This is a little more time consuming, but not really a big deal.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Now, you will start on the outermost perimeter, and layer your way in toward the center. Pick up a slice, and lay it against the inner wall of the pan, thin peel edge against the bottom. Do this all around, spiraling inward, alternating veggies as you go. They can overlap by an inch or so. The tomato sauce on the bottom of the pan helps to hold them in place.

Keep going until you get to the center, the tight and more upright the slices are, the better. For the very last one you’ll have to roll up the slice like a little cigar and stick it in the center.

Now use a pastry brush to brush the 2 tbs of olive oil all over the top, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and thyme.

Pop it in the oven for about 35 minutes, but keep an eye on it, it’s done when the edges start to brown, the veggies are visibly softened, and the sauce starts to bubble up between the layers.

Baba Ganoush!

This super creamy and delicious Levantine delight is the perfect dip for pita chips or raw veggies. Like most of the dips and sauces I post about, you can use this for just about anything, on sandwiches, on salads,  on top of roasted vegetables etc. It’s so easy and full of flavor. It makes a great sidekick to hummus and tapenade on an appetizer platter. There are many ways to cook an eggplant and tradionally, you would grill it whole to get a smoky flavor, but I wanted it faster so I went with the broiler, which provides the smoky flavor in half the time. Baba Ganoush is one of the silliest named foods ever in my opinion, hence the exclamation mark. Legend has it that the dish was invented at some point by a member of the royal harem, probably for the sultan, and translates in Arabic to ‘pampered daddy’. So go ahead, whip some up, pamper yo’self.

Baba Ganoush!

makes about 1 to 2 cups

1 eggplant

3 tbs olive oil divided

1/3 cup tahini

juice from 1 lemon

4 cloves garlic

dash of salt

2 tsp parsley divided

a pinch of coriander

Set your oven to broil. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the eggplant and slice into 1/2 inch slices. (I personally love the peel, so you can leave it on if you want, it just isn’t as traditional and the peel gets pretty crispy, so it’s a texture call on your part.) Generously grease a large baking pan with 1 tbs olive oil, and lay the slices evenly, rubbing the second tablespoon of olive oil on top of the slices. Pop it under the broiler for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, flip the slices and put them back in for another ten. Keep an eye to make sure they don’t burn, mine got nice and golden on top. If they look like they are too dry you can rub a little more oil on them. They should become nice and mushy, as eggplant tends to liquify the longer it cooks. Pull them out and allow to cool. Then add the eggplant, tahini, lemon, garlic, and salt to a food processor and blend away. Once it looks nice and smooth, pour into a small bowl. Garnish with the parsley, and the last tablespoon of olive oil. Other options include paprika, cayenne, (shown) cumin, mint, black pepper, (as shown) or pie nuts. I ate it with some root vegetable chips.