Baba Ganoush with Red Pepper.

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NEED PICTURE OF RED PEPPER BLEND INTO SMOOTH PASTE tome

Baba Ganoush is a middle eastern dish. The smoky flavor is the trait that defines this recipe. To achieve this result, char the eggplant over an open fire if you have a wood burner, even better as this gives it a more natural smoky taste. Once cooked, don’t wash the charred skin, as this will also wash away all the exceptional smoky flavor. DO NOT WASH IT 🙂

Peel away the charred skin slowly. It’s worth the effort, trust me. The roasting process also helps remove excess moisture from the eggplant to ensure you will not end up with a mushy baba ganoush.

In its most basic form, baba ganoush is prepared by combining eggplant, lemon juice, salt, olive oil, and tahini (crushed sesame seeds). We have added a few more ingredients to add an extra oomph to the recipe. It goes best with raw veggies, as a spread in bread or as a dip; basically, how you would serve a hummus.

Eggplants more or less have a similar texture to tomatoes which is why they are so good for sauces, barbeques, and even stews, apart from adding great flavor to this baba ganoush.

Eggplants are an amazing source of vitamins B6, C, and K, magnesium, niacin, fiber, copper, thiamine, folic acid, manganese, potassium, and phosphorus. They, therefore, support your digestive function, boost bone health, heart health, improve brain function, and help blood vessels form properly. Enjoy this healthy recipe that pairs up so well with a wide variety of foods.

Note: A lemony taste in baba ganoush may add too much citrusy sourness, which may overpower the smoky richness of the charred aubergine, yet a little zingy punch nevertheless goes well. Enjoy!

Draining and Chopping

Fennel

Lemon Juice

A final element of every baba ganoush,

Tahini and Other Additions

The great rift in matters baba ganoush seems to be over adding tahini: Roden also, unusually, adds Greek yogurt to her recipe. It is lovely, but I feel it robs the dish of its lemony, so I’ll be leaving it out.

Herbs and Spices

You can add chili powder, “and sometimes a pinch of ground cumin” to the dip; both ingredients work well with aubergine and tahini, but neither is necessary if you want to enjoy the dish.

Baba Ganoush is definitely my favorite Egyptian dish. I love the silky smoothness of this dip, and the sweetness and crunchiness the pomegranates add to the dish are different. Use pomegranates and aubergines much as possible during the season.

Print Recipe

Baba Ganoush with Red Peppper

Pestos, Dips & Sauces – Dadaji Fusion Recipes

By SS Shiva – Serves: 4-5

Prep Time: 20 min – Cooking Time: 20 min – Total Time: 40 min

Nutritional Benefits: Eggplants are a rich source of vitamins B6, C, and K, magnesium, niacin, fiber, copper, thiamine, folic acid, manganese, potassium, and phosphorus. These vitamins and minerals help support your digestive function, boost bone health, heart health, improve brain function, and help your blood vessels form properly. Tahini is a great source of healthy fats, vitamin B6 and thiamine, and minerals such as manganese and phosphorus, which are very beneficial when it comes to bone health. In addition, tahini provides antibacterial benefits from their high antioxidant content that also helps fight off free radicals that cause oxidative damage and consequently result in chronic illnesses.

Ingredients

• 2 large eggplants (aubergine)
• 1 large red bell pepper, roasted in an open flame or grilled
• 1 lemon, juiced, or more if you like it lemony
• 2 tbsp fresh basil leaves
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 1 tsp black pepper, crushed
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 100g sun-dried tomatoes

Instructions

1

Roast the eggplant over an open flame or over a charcoal grill; keep turning with tongs until the skin is charred all around and cooked through.

2

Repeat the same process with the red pepper until the skin is well charred or burnt and cooked through.

3

Place the roasted red pepper and eggplant inside a plastic bag, allowing them to sweat as they cool; this will make it much easier to remove the charred skin.

4

Carefully peel off the eggplant and red pepper skin cut the eggplant and red pepper into fine pieces and place them aside in a bowl.

5

Cut sun-dried tomatoes into small pieces; this gives an extra rich flavor to the baba ganoush.

6

Place all the ingredients except the tahini and olive oil in a blender, and blend into a smooth paste.

7

Mix in tahini until well combined and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with flat-bread pitta bread, chappati, or tortillas.

8

For an extra lemony taste, squeeze more lemon juice into the spread.

Nutrition

• 279 Calories
• 18.2g Carbohydrates
• 23.8g Fat
• 8.8g Fiber
• 3.8g Protein
• 3.9g Saturated fat
• 597mg Sodium
• 8.8g Sugar