Mutabbal Jordani
The Levantine smoky aubergine dip with yogurt: charred aubergine mashed with tahini, yogurt, garlic, salt and lemon. Smoother and richer than baba ganoush.
Overview
Aubergines char on an open flame until skin is uniformly black and flesh is collapsed. Steam under foil 10 minutes; peel off the skin. Mash the flesh with tahini, yogurt, crushed garlic, lemon and salt to a smooth dip. Plate; pool olive oil; scatter pomegranate seeds, parsley and a pinch of cumin.
Ingredients
- 2 aubergines (large, about 700 g)
- 5 tablespoons tahini (good Lebanese / Palestinian quality)
- 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
- 2 garlic cloves (crushed to a paste with ½ tsp salt)
- 1 lemon (juice)
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt (to taste)
To finish
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon sumac
To serve
- Warm pita
Method
Stage 1 - Char
- Place aubergines directly on a gas flame (or under a very hot grill).
- Rotate every 5 minutes until skin is uniformly black and flesh is fully collapsed (15-20 minutes).
Stage 2 - Steam and peel
- Tip into a bowl; cover; rest 10 minutes (loosens the skin).
- Peel off the burnt skin; discard.
- Place flesh in a colander; drain 5 minutes (removes water).
Stage 3 - Mash
- Chop the drained flesh roughly.
- In a wide bowl, fold together aubergine, tahini, yogurt, garlic-salt paste, lemon, cumin and salt.
- Mash to a chunky-smooth dip with a fork - don't use a processor (too smooth).
Stage 4 - Taste
- Adjust salt, lemon, tahini. Should taste smoky-forward with creamy tahini-yogurt body.
Stage 5 - Plate
- Spread on a wide shallow plate; ridges with the back of a spoon.
- Drizzle olive oil; scatter pomegranate seeds, parsley, sumac.
Stage 6 - Serve
- Eat with warm pita as part of a mezze.
Notes
- Open flame is the dish: Roasting in the oven gives a passable but inferior result.
- Yogurt is the Jordanian touch: Baba ganoush (Levantine generic) uses just tahini; the Jordanian mutabbal adds yogurt for body. Both are right; this is the Jordan style.
- Drain the flesh: Aubergine releases water - drain or the dip is loose and bland.
Storage
- Refrigerate 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
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