Today I’m going to show you how to grill whole eggplants. Grilled whole eggplants can be used in a number of dishes, but most often I like it for making dip, or chopping up into a salad. The nice thing about grilling whole eggplants is that it is really easy, and the charred skin gives it a great flavor.
I like to garden as well as grill, and I usually always grow eggplant. Since I always have an over-abundance of them, grilling is one of the things I always do with them. If you don’t grow them, no worries, they are easy to find a farmer’s markets, and also the grocery store. When you get them choose ones that are more cylindrical rather than bulbous at one end; they will cook more evenly that way.
Set up your gas or charcoal grill for direct cooking over high heat. Get yourself two eggplants. I like to put garlic cloves in mine, so I’ll make ½ inch wide and deep slits into the eggplant and insert cloves of garlic. Put in as much as you like or none at all. I usually put in about 8 to 10 cloves per eggplant.
Put the eggplants on the grill. Grill them until the flesh is really soft, and the skin is completely charred on all sides. You will want to turn the eggplants with some long tongs like these often so they grill evenly. In all it should take about 20 to 30 minutes to grill them.
Once they are done transfer them to a platter and let them cool for a bit. Peel off the charred skin. Don’t worry if you can’t get it all, a few pieces here and there will add some flavor and visual appeal. Now from here you can make a dip, or chop it for a salad. Both are awesome.
For a salad, I chop it into bit-sized chunks, and toss it with grill tomatoes, onions, and bell peppers. I then season it with a bit of lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and some salt and pepper. It is really a wonderful salad.
Grilled eggplant dip is really good too. After you’ve peeled them, puree them in a food processor coarsely, and then add the following:
3 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
Once it is processed, spoon it out into a serving bowl and serve with grilled pita bread. It is such a flavorful dip, that you will love. You may have never heard of tahini. It is a Middle Eastern sesame paste, which you can find in some supermarkets, but I usually get mine from here.
That is how to grill whole eggplants that can be used for a variety of things. Try it out in both a salad and the dip, you and your family will love both; they are really flavorful.
image courtesy of passer-by/flickr