Baba Ganoush Recipe

You'll love this baba ganoush recipe because it's easy to make with simple healthy ingredients; it has a pleasant smoky taste, a mellow eggplant flavor, and an irresistible creamy texture with a silky mouthfeel.

In the original recipe, the eggplant is often broiled or charred over an open flame to make it tender and infuse it with a pleasant smoky flavor.

We'll show you how to do that here, but we'll also give you options for cooking the eggplant in the oven or in an air fryer.

We suggest serving this delicious eggplant dip with other Middle-Eastern recipes such as hummus, falafel, tabouli salad, and warm pita bread.

Baba ganoush is naturally vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free.

Find the complete recipe with ingredients and instructions in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Eggplant

Use Italian eggplant or globe eggplant (aubergine). They have a dark-purple peel; you can find them in most grocery stores.

In the original Baba ganoush recipe, the eggplant is broiled on an open flame to infuse it with a natural smokey flavor.

If you can't broil or grill the eggplant and prefer to bake it in the oven or air fryer, we recommend adding a few drops of liquid smoke or some smoked paprika on top to have that delicious smokey flavor.

Tahini

Thaini is an essential ingredient in baba ganoush. We recommend tahini made from 100% hulled sesame seeds, preferably imported from a middle eastern or Levantine country like Lebanon or Palestine.

The tahini should be light in color and pourable. Avoid dark sesame pastes made with whole (skin-on) sesame seeds and other ingredients.

They are often bitter and unpleasant, and the eggplant dip won't be as delicious.

We cannot stress this enough; the wrong tahini will ruin your eggplant dip recipe.

Lemon

Fresh lemon juice adds a pleasant tangy flavor and freshness that cuts through the smoky eggplant and the creamy tahini.

Garlic

Garlic should not be the dominant flavor in baba ganoush, so we recommend starting with half garlic clove only to add more later if you like the dip more garlicky.

Make sure to chop the garlic before adding it to the food processor for the best results. We don't recommend garlic powder.

Salt and Pepper

Sea salt and kosher salt are both excellent options. Black pepper is optional.

Toppings (pick one or more)

• Fresh parsley: sprinkle your baba ganoush with a pinch of fresh flat-leaf parsley. Substitute other fresh herbs like mint or coriander for parsley, or use both.
• Extra virgin olive oil: drizzle with plenty of good quality extra virgin olive oil. Avoid using cheap refined vegetable oils for this recipe.
• Pine nuts: optionally, add some toasted pine nuts on top.
• Pomegranate seeds: also optional if you like to add some color and a tangy, sweet, and sour flavor.
• Smoked paprika: you can sprinkle it on top for a burst of color and smokey flavor.
• Cumin: ground cumin is totally optional and only added to some local variations of baba ghanoush.

1. Cook the eggplant

There are several ways to cook the eggplant. Below are the most common.

Tip: when we make baba ganoush, we do it with one broiled eggplant on an open flame for a smoky flavor and two air-fried or oven-baked eggplants.

OPTION 1: Broil on an open flame or grill

Pierce the eggplant with a fork, then place it on an open flame or a hot grill - we use our gas stove - and cook it until soft and charred on all sides. Turn eggplant often.

Let it cool down for a few minutes, then remove all charred skin scraping it off with a paring knife and add flesh to a food processor. Discard the stem and the skin.

Important: cooking on an open flame can be dangerous, so be cautious. If you don't feel comfortable with this step, use the oven-roasted method below.

Your kitchen is going to get smokey, so open windows and ensure there's enough ventilation. Also, your stovetop will get messy as the juices from the eggplant will come out. But flavorwise, this method is unbeatable!

OPTION 2: Broil in the oven

Turn on the oven with the broiling function (grill/heat from the top) and set it to max temperature.

If your oven doesn't have a broiler, then set it to 430°F or 220°C.

Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise, score the flesh of the eggplant with a knife, and season with olive oil, salt, and black pepper.

Arrange the eggplants cut side down on a baking tray and broil or bake them for 40 to 50 minutes, until tender.

Let them cool down for 10 minutes, then scoop the flesh out with a spoon, and transfer it into a food processor. Discard the stem and the skin.

Tip: roasting the eggplant cut in half, as opposed to roasting the whole eggplant, allows for the extra moisture to evaporate, and you won't have to drain the excess liquid in a colander. Also, cut this way; the flesh is easier to scoop out.

OPTION 3: Cook in the air fryer

Cut eggplants in half, score their flesh with a knife, season with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and arrange them cut side down in an air fryer basket.

Cook them at 400°F or 200°C for about 20 minutes or until tender.

Scoop the flesh out with a spoon and add it to a food processor.

Note: this method is the easiest, but it won't give you a smokey flavor. You can add some liquid smoke or combine air fryer eggplants with one gas stove top eggplant.

2. Blend the ingredients

Add tahini, peeled and chopped garlic, fresh lemon juice, and salt to the food processor with the eggplant.

Pulse a few times until you reach your desired consistency.

Baba ganoush should be creamy, with some texture, and not completely smooth. Taste and adjust for salt and lemon juice.

Transfer mixture to a serving bowl or platter and spread it out with a spoon, and garnish with finely chopped parsley and mint, a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and optionally some smoked paprika.

Baba ganoush is served as a spread or dip. Try it with warm pita bread, pita chips, crackers, in a wrap, or raw vegetable sticks like red peppers, carrot sticks, or cherry tomatoes and cucumber discs.

Make a Middle-Eastern feast

Better yet, serve it with other delicious Middle-Eastern dishes such as:

• Homemade pita bread (warm, soft, and crunchy)
• Hummus (a chickpea spread with tahini, garlic, and lemon juice)
• Falafel (middle-eastern chickpea balls with spices and herbs)
• Tabouli salad (Lebanese parsley salad with tomatoes)
• Shirazi salad (Iranian salad with cucumbers and tomatoes)
• Muhammara (Syrian spread with roasted tomatoes and bell peppers)
• Zaalouk (Moroccan eggplant dip with tomatoes)
• Fattoush (Levantine salad with crunchy pita bread)
• Fatteh (Levantine chickpea and yogurt plate with crunchy pita)

You can pick one or more of these dishes, arrange them on a large platter with olives, feta cheese, and lemon wedges, and make an excellent mezze (appetizer) platter.

Upgrade your grain bowls

Add a dollop of baba ganoush to one of our grain bowls for a beautiful meal with a creamy and smokey twist. Try it with:

• Barley salad
• Mediterranean farro salad
• Italian rice salad
• Quinoa salad
• Crunchy couscous salad
• Chickpea salad
• Pasta salad

Mutabal

Mutabal is a delicious Levantine eggplant and yogurt dip similar to baba ganoush but with a richer and creamier texture thanks to the yogurt.

Check out our mutabal recipe.

Chipotle Eggplant Dip

If you love stronger smokey, and spicy flavors, you will love this variation of baba ganoush with hot chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.

We had some chipotle peppers left over from our chipotle sauce, and we thought, why not try them in baba ganoush?

After all, eggplant is delicious with some extra spice and smokiness. It was one of the best improv recipes we've ever put together.

You'll need one to three chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, depending on your spice tolerance.

Add them to the blender with the rest of the ingredients, and pulse until creamy. It's hot, smokey, earthy, and a must-try for Chipotle lovers.

Chickpea Eggplant Dip

This one is a kind of hummus with roasted eggplant. What we like about this variation is that the chickpeas add nutrition (protein and healthy carbs) and make the dip more satiating.

Add one 15-ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed, to the other ingredients in the food processor.

Double the lemon juice and salt, and add an extra tablespoon or two of tahini. Blend until creamy and smooth.

Melitzanosalata (Greek eggplant dip)

Melitzanosalata is a Greek eggplant dip that shares many similarities to the original baba ganoush recipe.

We make this when we run out of tahini or don't want to use our food processor.

To make it, roast the eggplant as described in our recipe. Then, scoop the flesh out with a spoon and add it to a bowl.

Next, Add:

• ¼ finely chopped red onion
• 4 tablespoons of finely chopped parsley
• 1 finely chopped garlic clove
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ¼ teaspoon of pepper (or red pepper flakes)
• 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (or red wine vinegar)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Mash with a fork to reduce the eggplant flesh into smaller pieces, stir, then rest in the fridge for about 15 minutes before serving.

It should resemble a mix between a dip and a Mediterranean eggplant salad.

Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley, mint, onion, a drizzle of olive oil, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve with olives, on pita, flatbread, or other warm bread.

Make ahead: baba ganoush is an excellent recipe to make ahead as the flavors get better if the ingredients sit together for a while. We recommend making it a few hours and up to a day before serving it.

Refrigerator: store leftovers in an airtight container or covered with foil in the fridge for two to three days. Stir in some fresh lemon juice and drizzle with olive oil before serving it.

Freezer: we don't recommend freezing this recipe.

Eggplant is versatile when cooked. It works in so many different recipes; here are some of our favorites:

• Grilled eggplant (eggplant, olive oil, parsley, garlic, salt, etc.)
• Air fryer eggplant (olive oil, vinegar, parsley, garlic, etc.)
• Pasta alla Norma (roasted eggplant, basil, canned tomatoes, rigatoni pasta, etc.)
• Eggplant caponata (vinegar, eggplant, olive, capers, celery, onion, basil, etc.)
• Roasted eggplant (eggplant, olive oil, parsley, garlic, vinegar, etc.)

Or try any of these 35 ideas to cook with eggplant.

In need of ideas for more dips? These are perfect for guests and game nights:

• White bean dip (white beans, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, salt, etc.)
• Romesco sauce (almonds, hazelnut, garlic, sundried tomatoes, vinegar, etc.)
• Guacamole (red onion, avocado, lime juice, cilantro, tomato, etc.)
• Tzatziki (cucumber, mint garlic, dill, Greek-style yogurt, etc.)
• Hummus (chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, etc.)
• Avocado spread (tahini, garlic, lemon juice, etc.)

For many more starter ideas, check out our starters category page.

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