Roasted Eggplant with Zaatar and a Tahini Dressing

Eggplant/brinjal/aubergine, call it what you may but it is under appreciated. It’s easy to cook and soaks up all flavours really well. One of my favourite ways of using eggplant is roasting it – on a pan or in the oven. I can’t do the battered and deep fried fritters style because the grease on it makes me queasy. The way I make it, I barely use 2-3 tsp of oil in the pan and then it goes straight into the oven to cook through.

I used generous amounts of zaatar with little olive oil to brush the eggplant slices with. And for a dressing/dip, I made a lemon garlic tahini sauce. This dish is great for parties or as a side with your main.

Yield:

2 servings

Prep time:

10 mins

Cooking time:

20 mins

Ingredients:

Eggplant – 1 medium (1/2 inch slices)

Olive oil – 3 tsp (or a little more if the eggplant is bigger)

Zaatar or mixed dried herbs – 1 tbsp

Pepper – 1/2 tsp

Dressing:

Tahini – 1 tbsp

Lemon juice – of 1/2 lemon

Garlic – 2 cloves grated

Salt to taste

Method:

Slice eggplant and arrange them on a plate. Sprinkle salt on each side and let it sit for 10 mins. This will help draw moisture out of the eggplant.

Now pat the slices dry.

In a small bowl, mix the zaatar/herbs and pepper with olive oil and brush on one side of the slices.

Heat a nonstick pan and place the eggplant in them herb side down. Now brush the top side with the olive oil mixture.

Let it roast on high heat for about a minute on each side till it has a charred.

You could leave it on the pan for a bit longer so it cooks through or you could pop it into a preheated oven and let it cook there for 8 mins at 180 degrees C.

Mix the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and salt well and pour it over the eggplant. Throw in some pan roasted cherry tomatoes as well for some extra colour!