When you make this recipe, be prepared to smear it over a variety of bread such as your morning toast or biscuits. You can dip all kinds of things into it – crisps, carrots, celery stalks, tortilla chips, cucumber wedges or anything you like to enjoy with a dip. This dip is like baigan/bolanger/eggplant choka gone wild; it is so creamy and light.
Added ingredients such as anchovies, whole roasted garlic along with sour cream, whole milk yogurt or full fat, thick and rich Greek yogurt, gives this spread/dip the perfect balance of tang and salt. Green onions/scallions stirred in and garnished bring a delicate onion flavour.
Anchovies are small salt water fish with soft bones and strong flavour. They are mostly sold flat or rolled, filleted and either salt-cured or oil packed.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound eggplant/baigan
- 12 – 16 cloves garlic
Roasted Eggplant Dip/Spread Photo by Cynthia Nelson 1 x 2 oz. can of anchovies in oil
- ¼ cup sour cream, whole milk yogurt or full fat Greek Yogurt
- Thinly sliced green onions/scallions
- Thinly sliced or minced hot peppers
DIRECTIONS
- Make deep incisions all over the eggplants. Peel 2 – 3 cloves garlic, slice thinly and insert into each cut in the eggplant. Roast over medium-low flame until the eggplants are charred and cooked through. Let cool to handle, remove charred skin and set aside the flesh.
- Add the remaining cloves of garlic (unpeeled) to a pan with 2 – 3 tablespoons of oil. Roast over medium to low heat until a knife inserts easily into the garlic. Remove from pan and let cool to handle. Then peel garlic.
- Add the following ingredients to the bowl of a food processor – eggplant, roasted garlic, anchovies (with oil from the can) along with the sour cream or yogurt, whichever your are using. Cover and pulse until smooth. Taste for seasoning; you should not need to add salt but if it is not suited to your taste, then add salt to taste.
- Transfer the mixture to bowl and stir in the green onions/scallions and hot pepper; leave some to garnish. Drizzle with a little olive oil (optional) and serve at room temperature.
NOTE
You can use de-boned smoke herring fillet in place of the anchovies, however, the flavour of the dip will be over taken by the strong smokiness of the smoked herring.
