Zaalouk

I'm not sure which I enjoy more, saying the word zaalouk or eating this tasty little dish.

Zaalouk was first introduced to me at a potluck party I attended a few years ago. There were a lot of tasty treats at this party, as one might expect at a potluck, but this was by far my favorite dish. I've recently taken this to a few potluck parties myself and I'm glad to report there were no leftovers at any of the parties!  This is also a favorite snack enjoyed by my kids. In fact, it's by popular demand that I'm posting my version of this tasty dish.

Zaalouk is a traditional Moroccan dish which is served as a starter with crusty bread or pita bread or served as a side and paired with various dishes. This dish is right up my alley.  To begin with it is made with roasted eggplants, sometimes that's all I need in a dish, a whole whop of eggplants. Then it's flavored with paprika and cumin...so good! Another feature I really enjoy about this dish is that it's super easy to prepare.  I normally roast eggplants in the summer time and store them in the freezer to use throughout the year, so when I want to make this dish it takes me less than 10 min of prep time.  Now that's what I call a potluck friendly dish!

Even if you don't have the eggplant prepared, it's simple to quickly whip this up.  You can make this with boiled eggplants or chop up a raw eggplant and cook it with the rest of the ingredients.  These are tasty options but I find that I most enjoy this when the eggplant is roasted.  Roasting the eggplant is simple enough. You simply place a large, whole, unpeeled eggplant on a baking dish and place in the oven on the broil setting (turn temperature to medium).  Once one side is roasted (a bit charred/blackened) turn over until all sides are blackened and the flesh of the eggplant feels tender.  After removing from the oven, allow it to cool until it's cool enough to handle and peel off and discard the skin and use the flesh of the eggplant.

I've presented this dish as a side or an appetizer but you can easily turn this into a main.  The simplest way that you can do this is by adding some cooked chickpeas to this recipe, which will provide both nutrition (specifically protein) and taste. You can also add this to some cooked pasta and turn it into a pasta dish.

Print

With ImageWithout Image

Zaalouk

Yield: 1 1/2 - 2 cups

Author: Lara

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 30 Min

A traditional Moroccan dish served as a side or a starter. A combination of roasted eggplants, tomatoes and spices makes this an irresistible dish!

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant
• 1 cup of crushed tomatoes or 3 large tomatoes chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed
• 1/2 tbsp. sea salt
• 1 tbsp. smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 cup of chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• spring water as needed

Instructions

1. Roasted eggplant
2. Place a large, whole, unpeeled eggplant on a baking dish and place in the oven on the broil setting (turn temperature to medium)
3. Once one side is roasted (a bit charred/blackened) turn over until all sides are blackened and the flesh of the eggplant feels tender
4. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly and peel off charred skin and discard
5. Zaalouk
6. Place roasted eggplant in a deep dish
7. Mix in crushed tomatoes, garlic, salt and spices
8. Bring to a boil over med/high heat
9. Reduce heat to low and cover and simmer for 10 min until all flavours are incorporated
10. Prior to reducing heat check if the mixture has sufficient liquid, if not add some water (approx. 1/4 cup)
11. Once cooked through, add cilantro and olive oil, mix until incorporated and serve.

Notes:

 

Created using The Recipes Generator