Eggplant Dip with Scallions and Cilantro
By Matthew FairmanPublished on June 21, 2021
Time
1¼ hours
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
We took inspiration from worldwide iterations of baba ghanoush to create our own version of an eggplant dip. If the only eggplants you can find weigh more than 12 ounces, you may need to go a little heavier on the salt, lemon juice, cumin, and pepper flakes when seasoning to taste in step 6. The finished product should be assertive but not overpowering.
Instructions
- Poke each eggplant about 6 times with paring knife.
- FOR THE OVEN: Adjust oven rack 8 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
- Place eggplants on prepared sheet (or directly on cooking grate) and broil (or grill, covered) for 20 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and flip eggplants (or flip eggplants on grill). Return sheet to oven and broil (or grill, covered) for 10 minutes. (Skin should be charred and have aroma of burning leaves.) Transfer eggplants to plate and let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine lemon juice, garlic, and salt in medium bowl and let sit while eggplants cool.
- Working with 1 eggplant at a time, split lengthwise on 1 side through skin and peel back skin to expose flesh. Using spoon, scoop out eggplant flesh; discard eggplant skin. Chop eggplant flesh fine with chef's knife and transfer to bowl with lemon juice mixture.
- Add tahini, 2 tablespoons oil, scallions, cilantro, cumin, and pepper flakes to eggplant mixture and whisk to combine. Let dip sit for 20 minutes to allow flavors to blend, stirring occasionally. Season with extra lemon juice, salt, cumin, and pepper flakes to taste. Spread dip in shallow bowl and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Serve.
Time
1¼ hoursYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Baba ghanoush—which originated in Lebanon and has become increasingly well-known worldwide—is a deeply flavored dip made from fire-roasted eggplant enriched with tahini and seasoned with lemon and garlic. Baba ghanoush is delightfully adaptable, and it inspired us to make a zesty eggplant dip with scallions, cilantro, and pepper flakes. The bedrock technique for baba ghanoush is cooking the eggplant over an open flame until the skin is charred (it gets discarded) and the interior is meltingly tender. For our version, we pierced the eggplant skins to encourage moisture to evaporate and to prevent them from bursting open. Then, we placed them either under the broiler or on the grill. After about 30 minutes, the eggplants were fully tender and smoky. To temper the pungency of the raw garlic, we combined it with the lemon juice and salt and let it sit while the eggplants cooled. Whisking a generous amount of tahini (along with olive oil) into the eggplant ensured that the dip was rich and creamy. To account for the eggplants' variable size and water content, we seasoned the dip to taste with additional lemon juice, salt, cumin, and red pepper flakes before serving.
Before You Begin
We took inspiration from worldwide iterations of baba ghanoush to create our own version of an eggplant dip. If the only eggplants you can find weigh more than 12 ounces, you may need to go a little heavier on the salt, lemon juice, cumin, and pepper flakes when seasoning to taste in step 6. The finished product should be assertive but not overpowering.
Instructions
- Poke each eggplant about 6 times with paring knife.
- FOR THE OVEN: Adjust oven rack 8 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
- Place eggplants on prepared sheet (or directly on cooking grate) and broil (or grill, covered) for 20 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and flip eggplants (or flip eggplants on grill). Return sheet to oven and broil (or grill, covered) for 10 minutes. (Skin should be charred and have aroma of burning leaves.) Transfer eggplants to plate and let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine lemon juice, garlic, and salt in medium bowl and let sit while eggplants cool.
- Working with 1 eggplant at a time, split lengthwise on 1 side through skin and peel back skin to expose flesh. Using spoon, scoop out eggplant flesh; discard eggplant skin. Chop eggplant flesh fine with chef's knife and transfer to bowl with lemon juice mixture.
- Add tahini, 2 tablespoons oil, scallions, cilantro, cumin, and pepper flakes to eggplant mixture and whisk to combine. Let dip sit for 20 minutes to allow flavors to blend, stirring occasionally. Season with extra lemon juice, salt, cumin, and pepper flakes to taste. Spread dip in shallow bowl and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Serve.
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