Moutabal is a Middle Eastern and more precisely a Levantine appetizer (Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asian region), made with roasted smoky eggplants, lemon juice, garlic, tahini, yogurt salt & pepper and nothing else ! I’ve tested different ratios of ingredients and have concluded that LESS IS MORE and I’ll explain why.

Most people are familiar with Baba Ghanoush from Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Armenia, Turkey and Iran and/or Melitzanosalata from Greece, often spiced with cumin and coriander seeds and less creamy because no yogurt is added. All are excellent but different in texture and appearance.

I kept preparing it and adjusting it each time, at least once per week until I felt that I got it right and to get it right, you must be ready to let the roasted and smoky eggplant flavors dominate the lemon juice and tahini sesame paste flavors and use almost no spices and I kept reducing the additions until it was just right. In the end it’s composed of 75% roasted eggplant pulp and 25% of the rest of the ingredients.

Now don’t be surprised that 4 eggplants (about 1 kg) will only yield about 300 grams after 60 minutes of roasting and several hours of straining well, but denser is better.

Adding the smoked salt during the broiling process as well as later when preparing the dip, makes it taste like you prepared the eggplants on a barbecue and straining the roasted eggplant pulp very well before incorporating it with the other ingredients, will make it thicker and the yogurt will make it a bit creamier and quite paler.

Please try this, this way, you won’t regret it ! … :)