Eggplant with tahini, pomegranate and tomato salsa

It’s simple, looks incredible and tastes even better. I love this meal best when the grilled eggplant is eaten warm or at room temperature.

Credit: Savannah van der Niet

• serves

  8

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• olive oil, for drizzling
• 3 eggplants (aubergines), sliced 1 cm (½ inch) thick

Dressing

• 80 ml (2½ fl oz/¹⁄³ cup) tahini
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) warm water
• ½ tsp ground cumin

Salsa

• seeds from 1 fresh pomegranate (see Note)
• 3 ripe tomatoes, cut into 5-mm (¼-inch) cubes
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• ½ bunch mint, finely chopped
• ½ bunch coriander (cilantro),
• finely chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• juice of ½ lemon

Toasted Almonds

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 100 g (3½ oz) slivered almonds
• ¼ tsp salt

Serves 8 as a main, 10-15 as a side.

Instructions

1. Heat a chargrill pan with a good drizzle of olive oil. Add the eggplant slices in batches and cook on each side for about 5 minutes, or until coloured and softening. Sprinkle each piece with a little salt. Repeat until you have cooked all slices well. Arrange the cooked eggplant on a big platter or in a large wide bowl.
2. Blend the dressing ingredients using a food processor, or whisk by hand until combined; the dressing should be thick, but drizzle-able. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired.
3. Combine all the salsa ingredients in a bowl. Season well with salt and pepper.
4. Toast the almonds in a small frying pan with the olive oil and salt, stirring often for 3–5 minutes, until they’re golden brown. Remove from the heat.
5. Drizzle the eggplant with the tahini dressing, spoon the salsa over and scatter with the toasted almonds. Garnish with extra herbs if you like.

Note

• Everyone seems to have a different method for removing the seeds from a pomegranate. Personally, I quarter mine, then submerge it in a bowl of water and pull out the seeds. The white pith will float to the top, the seeds will sink, and you’ll be able to just drain the bowl and have all the lovely little red jewels ready to go.

Recipe and images from The Shared Table by Clare Scrine, Smith Street Books, RRP $39.99

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.