Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce
Made this one for the first time yesterday (ate it once before, at a good friends place – in combination with lamb – nice combi!). Had dinner with a few friends. Something we plan more regular now. Great spending time with other food-lovers. Oh ánd funny people – laughed my ass off… thanks!!!! (Can’t really go for the ‘show don’t tell’-principle here – you had to be there 😉 – Anyhow, wonderful when the recipes are requested after dinner. So it must have been a success. Here you go. Good luck Svennie!!! 🙂
Again, creator of this recipe -Ottolenghi-, surprises with his mix of flavours. Tasty roasted eggplant, with the fresh buttermilk sauce and juicy pomegranate. A tasty-explosion!!!
It’s my plan to make it once again for starter at Christmas dinner (with flat bread). By the looks ánd the taste, I’d say: not a bad choice…
Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 large and long eggplants
- 1/3 cup / 5 tbl sp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon thyme leaves, plus a few whole sprigs to garnish
- Maldon sea salt and black pepper
- 1 pomegranate
- 1 tsp za'atar
- >> For the sauce:
- 9 tbsp buttermilk
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, plus a drizzle to finish
- 1 small garlic clove, crushed
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°F. Cut the eggplants in half lengthways, cutting straight through the green stalk (the stalk is for the look; don't eat it). Use a small sharp knife to make three or four parallel incisions in the cut side of each eggplant half, without cutting through to the skin. Repeat at a 45-degree angle to get a diamond-shaped pattern.
- Place the eggplant halves, cut-side up, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them with olive oil—keep on brushing until all of the oil has been absorbed by the flesh. Sprinkle with the lemon thyme leaves and some salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, at which point the flesh should be soft, flavorful and nicely browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool down completely.
- While the eggplants are in the oven, cut the pomegranate into two horizontally. Hold one half over a bowl, with the cut side against your palm, and use the back of a wooden spoon or a rolling pin to gently knock on the pomegranate skin. Continue beating with increasing power until the seeds start coming out naturally and falling through your fingers into the bowl. Once all are there, sift through the seeds to remove any bits of white skin or membrane.
- To make the sauce. Whisk together all of the ingredients. Taste for seasoning, then keep cold until needed.
- To serve, spoon plenty of buttermilk sauce over the eggplant halves without covering the stalks. Sprinkle za'atar and plenty of pomegranate seeds on top and garnish with lemon thyme. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil.
Bregje Jonkhart
Made this dish for a diner with friends this week. Big succes! Ideal dish for a summer rooftop diner.
Marleen
Good to hear Bregje!