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Halved roasted eggplant with spices, tahini sauce, herbs, and pine nuts on a large white plate with wooden serving spoons on the right.

Roasted Eggplant with Tahini Sauce

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 10 reviews
  • Author: Veronika | thehealthfulideas
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 2-4 1x
  • Category: Side
  • Method: oven
  • Cuisine: Middle Eastern
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

This Roasted Eggplant with Tahini Sauce is made with za'atar spice and served with lots of fresh herbs, chili flakes, and toasted pine nuts. The eggplant is crispy on top and buttery soft on the inside. Serve as a light main or as a side.


Ingredients

Units Scale

Tahini Sauce:

  • 1/3 cup tahini
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1 lemon juiced (2-3 tbsp)
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
  • 1/8-1/4 cup water (start with 1/8 cup and add more to reach desired consistency)

Roasted Eggplant:

  • 2-3 globe eggplants
  • 2 tbsp avocado oil or raw sesame oil (not toasted sesame oil)
  • 2 tbsp za’atar spice
  • 1/4 cup water

Toppings:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • A handful of fresh herbs (mint, flat leaf parsley, and/or dill)
  • 2-3 tbsp toasted pine nuts (see notes)
  • 1 tsp chili flakes
  • Toasted baguette

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400F (200C) and prepare a large baking sheet.

Tahini Sauce:

  1. Add all ingredients except water into a medium bowl or a jar. Whisk together until well combined. Add water slowly until reached desired consistency. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Roasted Eggplant:

  1. Slice your eggplants in half lengthwise. Using a small knife or the tip of a bigger one, make small incisions in a crosshatch pattern, careful not to cut through the skin. The sharper your knife the easier this is to do.
  2. Drizzle the eggplants evenly with avocado oil. Add more if needed, eggplants are very spongy and absorb liquid easily.
  3. Sprinkle on the za’atar spice and press it into all the little crevices you made earlier.
  4. Add a splash of water to the bottom of the pan and roast 40-50 minutes. Add more water as needed. The water helps to steam the eggplant a little and to make sure it doesn’t burn. You can drizzle a little over the eggplants too if they look too dry.
  5. The eggplants are ready when they’re very soft and brown on the edges. 

Serving:

  1. Arrange the eggplants on a serving plate, and drizzle with tahini sauce and a little bit of olive oil. Sprinkle with fresh herbs, toasted pine nuts, and chili flakes. Serve with a toasted baguette or a choice of protein. 

Notes

Toasted pine nuts: Add pine nuts to a large skillet and toast over medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes stirring often to make sure the pine nuts don't burn. They release oil when they get warmed up so there's no need to add any. They're ready when they're even golden brown.

Leftovers: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It's best to keep the eggplant separate from the tahini sauce so that you can warm up the eggplant first and drizzle after. You can eat the leftovers chilled or warm them up in the oven at 350F for 10 minutes.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 312
  • Sugar: 10.2 g
  • Sodium: 322.7 mg
  • Fat: 24.4 g
  • Saturated Fat: 3.3 g
  • Trans Fat: 0 g
  • Carbohydrates: 22.7 g
  • Fiber: 10.8 g
  • Protein: 6.7 g
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