Vegan Mutabal
Vegan Mutabal is a Middle Eastern eggplant dip. I made this mainly because I wanted something a bit different than Baba Ganoush, and I am so tired of any kind of hummus. If you can relate do this, I highly recommend you try this recipe.
But that is not the only reason to make this lovely dip. It is vegan, super delicious and it goes well with a bunch of things. It can be a part of a meze plate, you can eat it with pita bread, or anything you like really. I for example used it as a part of a stuffed sweet potato recipe. It is safe to say that it tasted amazing.
I don’t know if you can get this dip from a store, I just know we don’t have any in Bosnia (except for Arabic restaurants). Vegan Mutabal is also super easy to make, and you can also store it in the fridge. If you want to know how I made this and why it is so great, feel free to keep reading.
Some health benefits
One of the main ingredients of this dip is tahini. Since I never wrote about it before, I think this is a perfect time for me to do that. Tahini contains a variety of vitamins and minerals. It’s also rich in anti-inflammatory monounsaturated fats. It is full of antioxidants, including the lignan sesamin. In animal studies, sesamin has exhibited numerous health benefits. Yet, more research in humans is needed.
Sesame seeds may decrease risk factors for heart disease and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Sesame oil and sesame seed extract have been shown to exhibit antibacterial qualities in test-tube and animal studies. These effects are believed to be due to the healthy fats and antioxidants they contain. However, more research is needed. Tahini contain compounds that may promote brain health and protect nerve cells, according to test-tube and animal research. It also contains compounds that may have anticancer properties.
Sesame seeds contain compounds that may protect your liver and kidneys from damage.
Eggplant provides a good amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals in few calories. They are high in anthocyanins, a pigment with antioxidant properties that can protect against cellular damage.
Some animal studies have found that eggplants may improve heart function and reduce LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels, though human research is needed. They can help promote weight loss. It can also be used in place of higher-calorie ingredients.
Eggplants contain solasodine rhamnosyl glycosides, which test-tube studies indicate may aid in cancer treatment.
And as you might have noticed from the ingredient list, there are a few more healthy veggies included in this recipe, but more on them some other time. I think that these are some pretty good reasons to try and include eggplant into your meals every now and then.
A piece of advice
As you might have noticed already, this is an easy recipe that requires only a few ingredients. Most of them I already had at home. This is why I will keep this section of the post very short.
It would be best if you could crush your garlic with salt and cumin. Maybe you can also put it in a blender, but this is a really small amount of ingredients, so I didn’t try this method.
The best way to cook eggplants for vegan Mutabal would be to roast them over open flame. I did not have any other choice but to use an oven, and you can use one too. I was more than happy with the results. The eggplants are done when they become very soft on the inside. Just be careful when you take them out of the oven and when you try to cut them. They will be very hot, you don’t want to burn yourself.
Another thing you can do is add some vegan yogurt to this vegan Mutabal recipe. I will try to make this version soon, with some cashew yogurt.
These measurements are enough for 1 medium bowl of Mutabal dip. If you need more than that for some reason, make sure to increase the amount of ingredients accordingly.
Vegan Mutabal
Ingredients
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp of salt
¼ tsp of cumin
45 g of tahini
2 medium-sized eggplants
2 tbsp of lemon juice
¼ tsp of pepper
Olive oil
Smoked paprika
Fresh parsley for garnishing
Directions
- Heat the oven to the maximum heat. Line a baking dish with some parchment paper. Stab each eggplant with a fork 5 to 6 times and put them in the baking dish. Bake the eggplants on maximum heat for about 20 minutes (they shoud become soft on the inside). Take them out of the oven and cut them in half lengthwise. Let them cool down.
- Cut the garlic cloves into slices or smaller pieces. Crush them with salt and cumin until you get a puree. Take a medium-sized bowl, put the tahini in and mix it with the crushed garlic.
- Take a spoon and scoop out the eggplant pieces. Throw away the eggplant skin. Add the pieces to the tahini bowl, add the fresh lemon juice and pepper and mix. Transfer everything to a blender cup. Blend until you get a creamy dip.
- Put the vegan Mutabal into a serving bowl. Top it off with some olive oil, smoked paprika, chopped fresh parsley and serve.
If you liked this recipe, make sure you check out my other recipes like:
Feel free to tell me what you think about this in the comments below, or send me the pictures of your own vegan Mutabal dip. If you did something differently, I would also like to hear that, I’d love to see the things you come up with.
P.S. for more recipes like this and a bunch of other stuff, follow me on instagram, @margo_drobi.
Also, I recently started a Patreon page, where you can subscribe and help me create more/better content. In return, you will get an exclusive piece of content (recipe) each month. My plan is to increase the amount of that content if I gain a few subscribers. If you are interested and you want to find out more, I will leave the link to my Patreon right – here