Turkish Grilled Eggplant and Pepper Salad with Walnuts Recipe
This salad is a bowl full of smoky eggplant, sweet peppers and crunchy nuts, drizzled with a lemon-garlic dressing. In Turkey, similar appetizers, called meze, are served before the main course or for sharing while chatting. At home, it works perfectly as a colorful starter for a get-together with friends.
The combination of smoky roasted eggplant and peppers with crunchy walnuts and a bright lemon-garlic dressing gives this simple salad a deep, complex flavor reminiscent of Turkish meze bars.
Chef's tips
Roast the vegetables until the skins are really charred—this is what gives the salad its characteristic smoky note. If you have a grill or gas stove, you can char the peppers and eggplants directly over the flame for even more flavor.
How to serve
Serve in a shallow bowl, generously sprinkled with parsley and nuts. Offer warm flatbread or pita on the side and a bowl of thick yogurt drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with a little salt and sumac or chili flakes.
Ingredients
- eggplant - 2 pieces
- pepper - 2 pieces
- tomatoes - 200 g
- onion - 1 piece
- walnuts - 40 g
- parsley finely chopped - 3 tablespoons
- olive oil - 3 tablespoons
- lemon - 1 piece
- garlic - 1 clove
- wine vinegar - 1 tablespoon
- salt - 0.75 teaspoons
- black pepper - 0.5 teaspoons
Preparation
- Wash and dry the eggplants, then prick them in several places with a fork. Wash and dry the peppers.
- Preheat the oven to 220°C with the grill or top heat function. Place the eggplants and peppers on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes, turning the vegetables every few minutes, until the pepper skins are well darkened and charred in spots and the eggplants are soft and slightly collapsed.
- Transfer the baked peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate or foil for 10 minutes to loosen the skins. Then peel off the skins, remove the cores and seeds, and cut the flesh into strips.
- Let the eggplants cool for a few minutes, cut them lengthwise and scoop out the soft flesh with a spoon, discarding the skins. Cut the flesh into smaller pieces.
- Halve the cherry tomatoes. Slice the red onion into thin slivers. Coarsely chop the walnuts.
- In a small bowl, make the dressing: mix the olive oil, juice of half a lemon, vinegar, finely chopped or pressed garlic, salt and pepper. Taste and add more lemon juice if needed.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and onion. Pour over the dressing and gently toss so the vegetables don’t fall apart.
- Finally, sprinkle the salad with chopped parsley and walnuts. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Storage
Sałatka najlepiej smakuje pierwszego dnia, bo warzywa są jeszcze jędrne. Przechowuj w lodówce w szczelnym pojemniku, przed podaniem wyjmij na 15 minut, aby się ociepliła.
