Familiar dip or rather something unusual? Check out this Baba Ganoush recipe that’s a dip like any other, yet more jovial!

Baba ghanoush is a Mediterranean condiment that’s used as a lighthearted dip for pita. If anyone has ever heard about hummus, also a Mediterranean dip, the similarities between the two will be striking.

Of course, since hummus is made of chickpeas and Baba Ganoush from roasted eggplant the flavors of the two are markedly different but their appearance is not.

Apart from the obvious reason of flavors, where eggplant can fight an uphill battle, especially among super tasters, there are various valid reasons to pick one dip over the other.

If we don’t burn five thousand calories daily for a living, our calorie intake may need be under mindful supervision.

Hummus has more protein which is extremely useful to build and maintain muscles but it also has more calories. If we have other protein source in our diet, like meat or dairy but can’t resist dipping into some fun then Baba Ganoush is the way to spend our days.

Both, Hummus and Baba Ganoush, share similar main ingredients, namely olive oil, lemon juice and tahini.

Interestingly though, hummus could integrate a wide variety of ingredients without the fear to lose its identity, Baba Ganoush on the other hand was to rigid to accept any deviation from its roots. Adding garlic, pepper and maybe a bit of yogurt will turn Baba Ghanoush into Mutabbal a similarly popular dish around the Mediterranean.

Baba ghanoush’s name comes from Arabic “baba” which means “daddy” and “ghanoush” that is roughly translates to “indulged” so we may find the meaning of the dish along the lines of “daddy’s favorite.”

Will it manage to be our favorite remains to be seen until our first dive, but if we have learnt anything from our relationship with the eggplants then probably Baba Ganoush won’t leave us without emotions either.

Ingredients

2 lb / 1000g Eggplant
1 teaspoon / 5g Salt
2 cloves / 6g Garlic
2 tablespoons / 30g Lemon juice
¼ cup / 50g Tahini
⅓ cup / 80g Extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon / 0.5g Cumin
¼ teaspoon / 0.5g Paprika
2 tablespoons / 8g Parsley (cut)

How to make Baba ganoush

Traditionally, eggplants for baba ganoush are roasted over open fire. So if our kitchen is still equipped with an infamous gas stove, we can simply scorch our eggplants over the flames, like we were right next to the shores of the Mediterranean sea. Otherwise, we can use our oven or our favorite skillet to roast the eggplants out of their skin. Cut them into half or quarter them if too big.
Heat skillet to medium high, pour some oil and then put the eggplants skin down. Roast until the flesh of the eggplant near the skin starts to soften and changes color. This can take a couple of minutes so be patient. Increasing the heat to high isn’t the best of ideas as it will cause the oil to smoke badly.
Flip the eggplants over and roast until it gets a nice sear.
If we have quartered the eggplants then we have one more side to roast then they are ready to be taken out.
They are hot so handle them with care. Hold the skin firmly then simply spoon the inside off.
Sprinkle them with salt then place them aside for 20 minutes.
Squeeze out some more of the remaining liquid by hand.
Put the eggplant, garlic, lemon juice, tahini, extra virgin olive oil, cumin and paprika into a food processor to combine them into a uniform paste.
Extra virgin olive oil should make it more stiff just like it’s happening with mayonnaise while adding back a bit more of the squeezed out eggplant juice, thinner. Dress it with freshly cut parsley, serve with homemade pita bread.