Although I am not a gastronome nor do I pretend to be, I like to prepare meals or foods that are as faithful as possible to the recipe, best known as the original. I have always thought that food definitely not only unites us culturally and geographically, it also takes us to our past and always tells us a story that is almost always curious or nice to know.
This dip or cream, as I have read, is quite popular in Middle Eastern countries, not only in Lebanon, and its rich flavors with regional spices such as sesame or garlic, make it a common guest in Mediterranean homes. Etymologically, Baba Ghanoush means "Father or Pampered Dad", there are different stories about its origin, the most common being that it was the food that a son prepared for his father who was already old and sick and could not chew well, while there are others that say that this preparation was given to a Caliph in Baghdad during the Middle Ages to please him, but whatever the story, this delicacy has broken the limits of time and has survived to this day, luckily!, at least for me. I am a lover of spicy dishes and strong flavors.
I will share the basic recipe that I use and modify it when calculating according to the quantities I need:
3 eggplants
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
2 cloves of garlic
The preparation is quite simple although methodical, I will tell you here the most important part of this recipe: if you look for recipes for this dip, it is most likely that you will find many where they tell you that you can make the eggplants in the oven or on the stove on a griddle and then continue with the rest of the procedure, but from experience I will tell you that what makes the difference in the flavor of this dip is the smokiness that should be felt in the eggplant, and the most direct way to achieve this flavor is by putting it directly on the fire. on the stove or wood without any container to contain it, this must be done until the skin of the shell is literally smoked and reduced a little, this process must be careful and is a little tedious, but it is what will give the characteristic flavor to this dish, which otherwise would hardly be achieved so purely. I use tongs to hold the eggplant and achieve the desired point, always checking that the heat is not too high.
Once this process is done, you have to let the eggplants cool and then remove the skin that covers them, removing all the pulp or meat from the eggplant. I'll give you some information when the smoking has been achieved well, the skin comes off without difficulty, and it is a guarantee that the flavor is already impregnated in the eggplant itself. If the skin refuses to come off, the eggplant probably needs a little more time on the stove.
Once the eggplant is ready, you take it to a mixer or blender and put all the ingredients except tahini and the oil, and mix them all well. I like to remove it from the mixer and make part of the mixture with a mortar so that the flavors and extracts of the ingredients can be used and impregnated more. Once this is done, I take them to the mixer again and blend them well. Finally, I add the tahini and slowly and slowly, while still mixing, I pour in the oil. This step is important so that the oil emulsifies with the other ingredients and does not cut them in any way.
Then you let them integrate everything well since it should be as creamy and smooth as possible. When everything is mixed, you serve it and you can add more cumin to taste to decorate (I am a cumin lover) or more parsley, if that is your preference. You serve it with any accompaniment such as cookies or bread, it is a healthy and very delicious food for any time. I hope you like it, here I share some photos, I even eat a little while I write of this delicious Baba Ghanoush.
