The Babaganoush is a creamy, flavorful, and slightly smoky Middle Eastern sauce that is made at home with just a few ingredients. If you love hummus for its creaminess and taste, you’ll surely enjoy this sauce which differs by its main ingredient. While the starring role in hummus is played by chickpeas, in babaganoush the main ingredient is roasted eggplant. Completing the list of ingredients are lemon juice, tahini sauce, oil, and garlic. Very few ingredients that create a pleasantly smoky, vegan, and gluten-free sauce, very versatile as it can be served in many ways, truly exquisite!
The preparation is really simple: bake the eggplants in the oven for about 40 minutes at 392°F. Remove the skin and scoop out the eggplant pulp, letting it drain for about ten minutes to lose most of its water. Add lemon juice, tahini, garlic, and oil to the eggplant pulp and mix with a fork in a bowl or using a food processor. Serve the obtained sauce on a serving plate, garnishing with oil, chopped fresh mint, and paprika.
Like every traditional recipe, there are different variations of this recipe, starting with cooking the eggplants directly on a stovetop flame or a barbecue, or in the oven as we proposed. We can also prepare it by simply mixing all the ingredients with a fork for a rustic sauce with a not too smooth texture, or blend them in the food processor.
Easy to prepare and tasty, great for accompanying raw or cooked vegetables, dressing salads, spreading on croutons, sandwiches, or paninis! In short, you can use it in many ways, all you have to do is get all the ingredients to prepare it at home!
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
- Seasonality: Summer
Ingredients to prepare Babaganoush
- 1.3 lbs eggplants
- 1/2 lemon (juice)
- 1.8 oz tahini
- 1 clove garlic
- mint
- paprika
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt
- pepper
Tools for preparing Babaganoush
- 1 Baking sheet
- 1 Oven
- 1 Food processor
Steps to prepare Babaganoush
Begin preparing the Babaganoush by washing and drying the eggplants , and placing them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake them in a preheated oven at 392°F for about 35-40 minutes. Once ready, let them cool slightly.
At this point, cut them in half and scoop out the pulp with a spoon, discarding the eggplant skin. Place the pulp in a colander for at least 10 minutes to drain part of its water.
Transfer the eggplant pulp into a bowl or a food processor.
Add the minced garlic clove, lemon juice, tahini, paprika, oil, and salt. Blend until you get a thick and smooth cream.
Transfer the babaganoush to a serving plate and garnish with oil, chopped mint, and paprika.
At this point, the babaganoush or eggplant caviar is ready to be served.
Simo and Cicci recommend
You can store the babaganoush in the fridge for 3/4 days in a well-sealed airtight container. It is also possible to freeze it.
FAQ
Can eggplants be cooked in another way without using the oven?
Oven baking is an effective and great method for cooking eggplants, but if you prefer, you can cook them traditionally by grilling them directly on the stove flame or on a barbecue until they are completely charred on the outside and very soft inside. This way, they will also develop a good smoky flavor typical of this sauce.
Is it better to mix or blend all the ingredients?
You can simply mix all the ingredients with a fork to get a creamy yet not too smooth sauce. Alternatively, you can simply put all the ingredients in a food processor and mix them to get a super creamy sauce. Surely this second method is much faster.
Where can I find tahini? If I can’t find it, can I substitute or omit it?
You can find tahini in most supermarkets or buy it online. You can also make it at home as we explain in this article, just click on it. You can certainly choose to omit it but it won’t have the same flavor as the original babaganoush.
What can I serve Babaganoush with?
This sauce is definitely suitable to serve as an appetizer or aperitif. You can accompany it with vegetables like carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, or raw peppers, or with pita bread, crackers, etc. or with falafel, chickpea patties or other vegetable patties. Furthermore, it can be a great idea to serve with big salads of both vegetables and grains like rice, barley, or spelt, or we can use it spread on sandwiches or paninis.
