Instant Pot Baba Ghanoush with Chickpea and Arugula Salad

Why This Recipe Works

It can involve many steps, lots of juggling, sometimes a grill, and often an oven. Traditionally, the eggplant is cooked over a low heat for a long period of time until the center is soft and can be scooped out. This can be a messy process. We discovered that we could cut out multiple steps and much of the mess with the Instant Pot, which streamlined everything and cut our eggplant cook time down to just 6 minutes under pressure —a fraction of the time. By peeling the eggplant before pressure cooking, we were able to eliminate the step of scooping it out. Additionally, the eggplant typically needs to cool completely before being scooped, but by starting with peeled eggplant, the cooling time no longer applied. To cook the eggplant in the pot properly, we needed to add water (to help avoid the dreaded burn notice and to allow the pot to reach pressure), but afterward it was imperative to drain the eggplant for 3 minutes to remove any excess liquid, which could leave the final whipped dish with a bland taste and a thin consistency. The last step was a quick puree in the food processor with the classic additions of lemon juice, tahini, oil, and garlic, which resulted in a silken texture with savory flavor. Zhoug, a spicy cilantro sauce, brightened up our baba ghanoush plate with an herbal punch and did double duty as a dressing for our chickpea salad. While the eggplant cooked, we tossed the chickpeas in a portion of the zhoug, then combined them with bright cherry tomatoes and peppery arugula. Quick-pickled onions brought color and acidity, while the addition of hard-cooked eggs provided extra protein and enough substance for a complete meal.