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Melitzanosalata - Grilled Eggplant Salad with Tomato, Vinegar, and Parsley

When we were eating our way through Greece, I tasted many, manγ versions of this meze. Too often they had little taste of eggplant because so many other ingredients had been added. I love the slightly smoky taste of eggplant, which I think is really brought out in this version of a classic Greek dish.

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Average: 3.3 (8 votes)

Ingredients:

3 whole eggplants, about 4 pounds
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup finely diced yellow onion
½ cup well-drained finely diced canned tomato
1 cup Greek yogurt
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup fresh lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
About 3 tablespoons seltzer water
1 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
Warm pita bread triangles for serving

Procedure:

 Preheat and oil a grill. Place a wire rack on α baking pan. Set aside.

 Pierce each eggplant in a few places with a dinner fork. Place the eggplants on the preheated grill and grill, turning occasionally to prevent burning, for about 15 minutes or until the eggplants are soft and the skin is black. Using a spatula, lift the eggplants from the grill and place on the wire rack in the baking pan to cool.

 When the eggplants are cool, peel and discard the skin as well as any juices that have dripped into the baking pan.

 Coarsely chop the eggplant flesh and place it in the bowl of a tabletop mixer fitted

with the paddle. Add the garlic, onion, and tomato and mix on medium speed for 1 minute.

Add the yogurt and mix for an­other minute.

  With the mixer still on medium speed, slowly add the vinegar and lemon juice. When blended, with the mixer still running, add the oil in a slow, steady stream. Begin αdding, the seltzer, a tablespoon at a time, beating until the mixture is slightly thick yet light and relatively loose. Stir in the parsley and oregano and season with salt and pepper.

 Transfer to a non-reactive container, cover, and refrigerate for 8 hours or over­night before serving with warm pita triangles.

By Jim Botsacos   from his Book,   New Greek Cuisine    by   Broadway Books