Ottolenghis Burnt Eggplant Salad with Green Tahini Dressing

Simplicity as its best!

Burnt Eggplant Salad With Green Tahini Dressing
Recipe Adapted from Jerusalem book and Ottolenghi's book 
Serve 4 as part of a meze platter

For the salad:
3¼ lbs eggplants
10 grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 tbs finely chopped chives
100 grams pomegranate seeds
1/4 small red onion, sliced - optional 
Good olive oil, to serve

For green tahini sauce:
150 ml tahini paste
150 ml water
80 ml lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic, grated
30 g Italian parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Score eggplants in few places with a sharp knife and place them in a baking tray, and bake for about 50 minutes to an hour until soft, turning them every 20 minutes or so. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cooled, tear them apart with your hands, discard the skins, then roughly chopped, drain in a colander to get rid as much liquid as possible, about an hour.

Place the drained eggplant in salad or serving bowl, add tomatoes, chives, pomegranate seeds, sliced red onion if using. Spoon some of green tahini sauce (or as much as needed for the salad) on top. Toss before serving, then drizzle with some olive oil. Taste and correct the seasoning as needed. 

To make green tahini sauce, place all ingredients in a food processor  and process until smooth. If the sauce seems to thick, drizzle in a little bit more water until you get the right consistency you desire. Taste and correct seasoning as needed. 

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