Slow-cooked Eggplants with lemon and green anise seeds
This recipe is now one of my summer favorite. These slow-cooked eggplants with lemon and green anise seeds are tender and crispy at the same time. The flavors are bold, this is such a delight!
I love eggplants, most of the time, I cook them Asian-style (miso-glazed or stir-fry with tamari) or in a more European way with tomatoes. This recipe is quite original, the lemon and green anise match perfectly with the eggplant. The lemon zest and crunchy eggplant skin bring a nice bitterness, with the yogurt dressing they counterbalance each other nicely. And, can we talk about roasted garlic? Isn’t it one of the best things in the world? I say yes to this 😀
Here, I took a traditional variety of eggplant but you can also have a delicious dish with the Japanese ones (white with purple strips) that have a thinner skin and thus, a reduced bitterness.
It is totally necessary to wait for all the cooking time (70-80mn) in order to have all these textures. Don’t be afraid to let bake that much and don’t forget to stir from time to time.
You can serve this dish as a side but also in salads when the eggplants are cold. Finally, you can use them as pizza toppings! In short, you have plenty of possibilities to use them.
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Slow cooked Eggplants with lemon and green anise
Ingredients
Slow cooked eggplants
- 680 g eggplants 4 small ones
- 1 lemon juice and zest
- ½ garlic head
- 1 tsp green anise seeds
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup Extra-virgin Olive oil 120mL
- fresh grated nutmeg
Yogurt sauce
- 30 g tahini sesame paste
- 50 g plant-based yogurt
- ½ tsp agave or maple syrup
- ½ lemon juice and zest
- 20 g water
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Place a rack in the middle of your oven. Preheat your oven to 170°C or 340°F, fan-assisted.
- In a baking dish, put the eggplants cut in wedges, the garlic head, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, green anise seeds, and salt. Stir with hands to coat all the ingredients.
- Put the garlic head down and roast, mixing 3-4 times during cooking, until everything has taken a nice golden/brown color, the edges are crisp and the inside melting (about 70 to 80 minutes).
- Take out the baking dish of the oven, scrape a little nutmeg on the eggplant, and let cool a little.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put all the ingredients in a small bowl and stir with a fork until you get a homogeneous sauce.
- Serve and enjoy!
