Zaalouk (Moroccan Eggplant Dip) (2024)

Zaalouk is an amazingly delicious Moroccan salad or dip made with roasted eggplants. Easy to make, it tastes great with toasted bread. And gets even better the next day.

Moroccan Zaalouk

A few fresh ingredients are all you need to make this incredibly tasty dip. And it is famous for good reasons — easy to make, tasty and versatile. This can be a salad or a dip depending on the texture you opt for.

Mash it up to a smooth texture as is done traditionally, then it turns into a lip smacking dip. Or chop the roasted vegetables to make a chunky warm salad reminiscent of the French ratatouille. But the latter style is not so typical.

Recipe Ingredients

• Eggplant:
  • The globe/American eggplants are best suited for this recipe. Avoid smaller Indian, Italian or Chinese eggplant varieties.
  • Choose fresh, firm, medium size eggplants that are heavy for its size and with a smooth, shiny and vibrant purple skin. Make sure that the stem is still green.
  • Male eggplants have fewer seeds and are less bitter. To find one, look at the indentation at the bottom. If it is round it is a male, if it is like a dash, then it is a female.
• Tomatoes: Pick the fresh and juicy variety. I chose vine ripe tomatoes. You can blanch the tomatoes, peel and deseed them if you wish.
• Garlic: Fresh garlic is a must for this recipe. Peel and mince them fine.
• Olive Oil: I use best quality extra virgin olive oil for this eggplant dip
• Spices: As much as possible use freshly ground spices for optimal flavor. For this recipe we need cumin, sweet paprika and cayenne. You can use a pinch of chili powder instead of cayenne.
• Herbs: Here I used fresh cilantro, but you can use a combination of cilantro and parsley or only parsley if you don’t like cilantro.
• Lemon: We need fresh lemon juice to make this dip. Be careful when using lemon juice with eggplant. A little goes a long way.

Smooth like a dip or chunky as ratatouille, this recipe is sure to please eggplant lovers.

How to Make Zaalouk

*Full recipe at the end of blog post.

• Cook Eggplants: Roast, broil or grill the whole eggplant until cooked through. Scoop out the cooked eggplant and mash it well.
• Cook with Tomatoes: Cook chopped tomatoes with olive oil, garlic, spices, and salt until softened.
• Mash it up: Stir in mashed eggplants and cilantro. Cook until thick dip-like consistency, mashing and stirring in between.
• Serve: Add lemon juice and salt as per taste. Refrigerate it overnight and serve at room temperature.
• Chunky zaalouk variation in recipe card below.

Roast eggplants on charcoal grill for amazing smoky flavor.

How To Serve

• Serve the smooth textured or chunky zaalouk with crusty or toasted bread. A few non-traditional ideas below.
• Spread some whipped yogurt or goat cheese on bread and top it with the smooth dip. Or layer the bread slice with chunky zaalouk and top it with some crumbled feta cheese.
• Try the smooth eggplant dip topped with sour cream, and toasted pita chips on the side.
• You could make sandwiches or wraps with too.

Nutrition Facts

This is a very healthy dip recipe. It is vegan, low carb, gluten free, egg free, dairy free, nut free and soy free. To make it low sodium, reduce the salt and use more lemon juice.

Eggplants are low in calories and carbohydrates but high in fiber. This makes it a great choice for those on low carb diets and for diabetics.

They are also a good source ofpotassium, folic acid, manganese and phytochemicals.The vibrant purple skin of eggplants is rich in anthocyanins which have potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

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