The Tahini, lemon yoghurt sauce with pistachios and sweet tart pomegranate arils are a delicious way to enhance the tender eggplant.

We had the opportunity to try authentic Persian food with some friends of ours who live the cuisine! As I am always on the lookout for a new way to prepare eggplant, I was inspired to first grill the eggplant for the char then finish in the oven.

The sauce makes this eggplant sing.

Plant yoghurt, tahini and lemon juice make the simple but tasty sauce.

Barberry is a frequent topping for Persian dishes, but I used pomegranate arils. They were in season and barberries are dried. They are very similar in flavor.

Chiltepin is a unique little pepper with a heat like a serrano but fruity like a habanero. You can find them on Amazon, here. They have such a unique flavor and they go a long way.

Serve this with some oven roasted cauliflower, hummus, flatbread and some lemon zested olives for a complete meal.

Roasted eggplant with lemony tahini sauce

This eggplant is first grilled for a slight char, then roasted to develop full flavor. The tangy sauce is made with yoghurt, tahini and lemon juice with the surprising addition of za'atar spice. Normally you would top this with barberry, but I use pomegranate arils when they are in season.

Print Recipe

Servings people

AuthorSnap Pea Sheep

Equipment

grill pan or frying pan
Covered baking dish

Ingredients

Eggplant

1 - 2 large eggplants May also use 2-3 baby eggplants per person
1/2 VIdalia or sweet white onion
1 juice of 1 lemon - about 4 tablespoons
1/4 tsp Freshly ground mixed color peppercorns Use black peppercorns if unavailable
2 Cloves garlic
1/2 tsp Himalayan salt
2 tsbp Pressed avocado oil
2 Tbsp Za'atar spice

Lemony tahini sauce

1/3 Cup Tahini
1/4 Cup Warm water
1/2 Cup Plain yoghurt I use So Delicious Unsweetened coconut yoghurt
1 Tbsp lemon zest
1 Juice of one lemon
1/4 Tsp Himalayan salt to taste

Toppings

3 Tbsp Pomegranate arils or barberry Soak barberry before using
3 Tbsp Pistachios
3 Tbsp Fresh herbs: Mint, oregano, parsley, thyme, dill or combinations I used oregano, thyme and mint
5 Dried chiltepin peppers, crushed Ted pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper flakes are fine

Instructions

Wash eggplants well. Score the skin of a globe eggplant by slicing into the skin every quarter inch. A sharp fork might do this also. Japanese of baby eggplants do not require scoring.
Cut the bottom spot from the eggplant. Slice the eggplant lengthwise from the stem to the bottom in 1/3" slices. The baby eggplants can be halved from the stem to the bottom, leaving the stem on but sliced in two. Japanese eggplants may be cut into coins.
S
Liberally salt the eggplant and set aside to allow it to sweat. Prepare the sauce then come back to the next step here.
Peel and slice Vidalia into wedges.
Rinse your eggplant and dry slightly with a tea towel. Wet eggplants do not absorb oil so much but two much water will make the oil splatter.
I have a grill press that I can rub with oil and heat on the gas flame. I then press the hot press into to eggplant slices to get grill marks.
The second option is to use a lightly oiled grill pan with a lid so once you get the grill marks, you can finish in the oven.
Third option is to just wipe your frying pan with the avocado oil and heat the pan before adding the eggplant. Press the eggplants so the heat will sear them.
You want a nice sear on them but don't want the eggplants to absorb the oil.
Place the seared eggplants in the baking dish (unless using the grill pan with lid combination). if using that combination pan, allow the pan to cool enough that you can add lemon water to the pan without it splattering.
Add onion slices into grill pan and let them get a little char. They will bake with the eggplant. Yuu can also add the whole garlic cloves and let them get cooked a little before mincing.
TO mince the garlic, place the cloves on a cutting board and give them a few chops. Then add just a bit of salt. Use the edge of the knife to press that garlic and let the abrasion of the salt mince it for you.
Once in the baking dish, rub each slice of eggplant with minced garlic. Then combine your za'atar, pepper and salt and sprinkle the spices over the eggplant slices.
Add 1/4 cup water to 3 tbsp lemon and add in to the pan from the side as to not wash away the seasoning. The water should be about half the depth of the eggplant slices.
Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes. Eggplant is more forging over done than under so don't fear leaving it in longer if it still has that spongy texture.
Arrange eggplant on a platter. Top with tahini sauce and toppings.

Lemony Tahini sauce

Add tahini to warm water and stir with a fork to melt down the tahini. Stir until the consistency of applesauce. Add in 3 tsp lemon juice. Add more hot water if necessary. Stir until smooth with no lumps.
Add yogurt to the tahini. You want the thickest part of the yoghurt. Plant yoghurt is sometimes watery. You can line a mesh colander with cheesecloth and allow it to drain if you prefer to have more of a Greek yoghurt texture.
Add salt to the salt Tahini might be salty already so adjust to your taste.

Toppings

Wash and prepare your herbs. Fresh oregano leaves, thyme leaves and mint chiffonade are my choice.
If using barberry, they are dried and need to be rehydrated for at least 20 minutes. Hot water will soften them faster. If using pomegranate, just sprinkle the arils on as is.
Pistachios can be scattered on whole (but shelled obviously). it;s easy to crush them aa little with the bottom of a sauce pan or heavy bowl. A mortar and pestle work too. A rough crush is enough to expose that beautiful green color.
Chiltepin peppers are about the size of a pea. Just crush them with your fingers and sprinkle over the entire dish.