Baba Ganoush
286kcal6.2g protein22.7g fat19.7g carbs~$1.54/ serving*Estimates computed from the ingredient list; cost uses average US supermarket prices. Not a substitute for packaging measurements or your receipt.
Contains sesame
Restrictions
ContainssesameIt is in an ingredient you cannot leave out.
Diets
VegetarianVeganPescatarianNo porkNo alcohol
Worked out from the ingredient list. It knows nothing about brands, shared equipment or cross contamination, and it is not a certification — if you have an allergy, you still have to read the label.
Ingredients
Servings:
| 1 lb |  eggplant (whole, pricked) |
| 3 tbsp |  tahini |
| 2 tbsp |  lemon (juice) |
| 1 clove |  garlic (minced to a paste with salt) |
| ¾ tsp | salt |
| 1 ½ tbsp | olive oil |
Optional
Not counted above. The dish works without them.
| ¼ tsp |  cumin (ground) |
| 2 tbsp |  parsley (chopped) |
| ¼ tsp |  paprika |
| 1 tsp |  pomegranate molasses |
Steps
- Char25 mindirect flame or coals, high, turning every 5 minwhole eggplant set straight on the burner grate — prick it first so steam escapes rather than bursting the skin. Keep going past the point it looks ruined: the skin must be uniformly black and papery and the eggplant must sag like a deflated balloon. Smoke flavor is deposited on the flesh through the split skin while the interior steams in its own water, so a half-charred eggplant is a raw eggplant with a burnt jacket.
- Rest10 mincovered, off heatcharred eggplant under a bowl or foil — the trapped steam loosens the skin from the flesh so it peels off in sheets instead of taking the smoky layer with it
- Peel5 minwarmskin and stem discarded. Chase down stray flecks of black skin, which read as bitter ash rather than smoke, but do not rinse the flesh — rinsing washes off exactly what the char put on.
- Rest20 minin a colander, drainingpeeled flesh left to shed its liquid. An eggplant is mostly water and that water is flavorless; leave it in and the tahini cannot bind, giving a soupy dip that separates within the hour.
- Mash4 minfork or wooden spoon, in a bowldrained flesh worked into rough strands. Hand-mashing keeps the fibers intact so the dip stays loose and shaggy; a blender shears them and whips air in, turning it into a smooth beige paste that tastes flatter than what went in.
- Fold3 minoff heat+ garlic paste + lemon juice + tahini + salt, folded rather than beaten so the tahini coats the strands without emulsifying into a hummus
- Top2 minroom temperature+ olive oil pooled on the surface + optionals. Serve at room temperature — cold mutes the smoke, which is volatile and only reads on a warm palate.