Israeli Eggplant Salad
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This Israeli eggplant salad is coming to you right from my mother’s kitchen in Israel. It’s simple, healthy, and delicious (or so they say… More on this below). It’s a great salad that should last in the fridge for up to a week!
First grade was the only grade I studied in a public school in the city (before I was accepted to a private school at an Israeli Kibbutz). School ended around 1 pm but my parents were still at work at this time, so I had a babysitter that kept me after school. She was mean… Her son was mean too.
And so, once at lunchtime, she forced me to eat an eggplant salad. I can’t remember the actual event and I can’t remember what kind of eggplant salad it was, what I can remember is that I puked for what felt like a week (it probably wasn’t actually a week). My body hurt, I was miserable, and to this day I will not touch a cooked eggplant to save my life!
Israeli Eggplant Salad Recipe…
I love growing eggplants. I also love how eggplants look, their color and shape, and so on… But I can’t smell or look at a cooked eggplant… Still to this day, it makes me want to vomit. So really, I don’t know what this Israeli eggplant salad tastes like! But I know that it comes from my mother’s kitchen and that everything that comes from there is delicious. And I also know that it’s a classic and everyone else loves it, so I hope you will too!
How to Roast Eggplants…
My mother roasts eggplants in her spare time so she has them in the fridge ready to go whenever she needs them. She does that with peppers too for this roasted pepper salad, and it seems to work very well for her. So the eggplants that we are using here are already roasted. Here is how to roast eggplants for this salad…
- Peel or don’t peel the eggplants. Slice them into 1/2-inch thick slices.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set the eggplant slices in one layer and spray with oil.
- Roast in a 400-degree F preheated oven for 15 minutes or until golden.
- Remove from the oven and let cool. Then either go ahead and make the salad or pack them in zip lock bags and store them in the freezer until you need them.
Ingredients…
- Roasted eggplants
- Pickles
- Cilantro
- Dry tomatoes
- Garlic cloves
- Lemon juice
- Black pepper
- Cumin
- Olive oil
- Salt
Kitchen Tools…
How to Make Israeli Eggplant Salad…
Step one – add eggplants and cilantro. Dice the roasted eggplant slices (my mother keeps the pieces pretty large). Remove the leaves from a small bunch of cilantro sprigs, wash them, and roughly chop. Add the diced eggplant and chopped cilantro to a mixing bowl.
Step two – add pickles, dry tomatoes, and garlic. Dice the pickles and dry tomatoes. Peel and dice the garlic cloves. Add to the bowl.
Step three – season the salad. Season with lemon juice, black pepper, cumin, olive oil, and salt. Give the salad a good mix and taste. Correct seasonings, transfer to a serving dish, and serve!
How to Serve This Salad…
- As a side dish – it’s a popular salad in my mother’s Israeli home. You’ll find it on pretty much every table… On the side of a vegetarian meal or a meaty one. It goes well with everything!
- With tahini sauce – this is a great salad to serve with tahini. Not raw tahini, but tahini sauce. Just drizzle it on top or…
- In a pita pocket – if we are talking about tahini… I’m sure you’ve heard of falafel, right? You can also make these similar lentil patties. Add whichever to a pita pocket, add the famous Israeli salad, this eggplant salad, and drizzle tahini on top and I promise that after the first bite, you’ll wonder if you’ve arrived in heaven!
How to Store Israeli Eggplant Salad…
One of the best things about this salad is that it can stay in the fridge for up to a week. Simply transfer it into an air-tight container and store it in the fridge. Before serving, remember to give it a good toss.
Kitchen Notes…
- Freeze roasted eggplants in portions – if you find that you like this salad, roast a bunch of eggplants and freeze them in portions so you always have roasted eggplants in the freezer, ready to go.
- Make ahead – this salad is a great salad for a party since you can easily make it ahead. Make it a day or even two before the party and store it in the fridge. Before serving, remember to give it a good toss.
- Replace the dry tomatoes – some people like making this salad with fresh tomatoes instead of dry tomatoes. I imagine my favorite Matt’s Wild tomatoes will fit right in here! You can also try adding fermented tomatoes or fermented green tomatoes.
- Pickles – they don’t have to be a certain kind. I love lacto-fermented cucumbers but feel free to use any kind of pickles.
OK, so, I hate that I can’t tell you from personal experience that this is the most delicious eggplant salad ever made, however, I can tell you from other’s experience that it’s an amazing eggplant salad. Hopefully, that’s good enough and you are going to give it a try! Let me know how you liked it!
More Israeli Recipes…
- Israeli Red Cabbage Salad
- Roasted Chickpeas
- Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- Mediterranean Zucchini Casserole
- Israeli Yellow Split Pea Recipe
- The Best Spinach Patties
Israeli Eggplant Salad
Healthy, easy, and delicious Israeli eggplant salad.
Ingredients
- 2 roasted eggplants (see notes for how to roast)
- 3 pickles
- 3 tablespoons dry tomatoes
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Dice the roasted eggplants (my mother keeps the pieces pretty large). Add to a mixing bowl.
- Remove the leaves from a small bunch of cilantro sprigs, wash them, and roughly chop. Add to the bowl.
- Dice the pickles and dry tomatoes and add to the bowl.
- Peel and dice the garlic and add to the bowl.
- Season with lemon juice, black pepper, cumin, olive oil, and salt. Give the salad a good mix and taste. Correct seasonings, transfer to a serving dish, and serve!
Notes
How to Roast Eggplants...
- Peel or don’t peel the eggplants. Slice them into 1/2-inch thick slices.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set the eggplant slices in one layer and spray with oil.
- Roast in a 400-degree F preheated oven for 15 minutes or until golden.
- Remove from the oven and let cool. Then either go ahead and make the salad or pack them in zip lock bags and store them in the freezer until you need them.
Kitchen Notes...
- Freeze roasted eggplants in portions – if you find that you like this salad, roast a bunch of eggplants and freeze them in portions so you always have roasted eggplants in the freezer, ready to go.
- Make ahead – this salad is a great salad for a party since you can easily make it ahead. Make it a day or even two before the party and store it in the fridge. Before serving, remember to give it a good toss.
- Replace the dry tomatoes – some people like making this salad with fresh tomatoes instead of dry tomatoes. I imagine my favorite Matt’s Wild tomatoes will fit right in here! You can also try adding fermented tomatoes or fermented green tomatoes.
- Pickles – they don’t have to be a certain kind. I love lacto-fermented cucumbers but feel free to use any kind of pickles.
- How to store leftovers - one of the best things about this salad is that it can stay in the fridge for up to a week. Simply transfer it into an air-tight container and store it in the fridge. Before serving, remember to give it a good toss.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 104Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 248mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 6gSugar: 8gProtein: 2g
Hi! I’m Lady Lee. I help homesteaders simplify their homesteading journey while still producing a ton of food! I am a single mother of four, I was born in Israel and raised in an agricultural commune called a Kibbutz. Now I homestead in central NC.
