Slow Roasted Eggplant Sticks

This really simple eggplant recipe will become your favorite way to cook eggplant.  It is my favorite so far. 

Blog's Category: Healthy, Hors D'oeuvre, My Own Fast and Easy, Vegetarian, Finger Food

Intro

*** The idea was to cook an eggplant, in a very simple way, to have nice and neat pieces of eggplant as a finger food. For this purpose, to dehydrate otherwise mushy eggplant, I decided to slow roast it. The result is awesome recipe that, for sure, is a keeper.

Yes, do not bother yourself by soaking eggplant in salted water, or anything like that. This recipe is very straightforward and does not require any extra manipulations and that's what I love about it - simplicity with a great result.


What is it?

Eggplant pieces, salted and peppered, roasted at low temperature for 1.5-2 hours, served with an optional, but very delicious, sauce.

Taste Description

Beneath near-dry surface of these slow roasted eggplant wedges, uncover tender buttery flesh of eggplant, with its subtle unique flavor, reinforced with a few sprinkles of smoked paprika and a killer medium-hot sauce you may want to smudge on everything you eat from now on.


Variations

- Omit smoked paprika, or replace it with your favorite table seasoning.
- As a dipping sauce, you may use any of your favorite sauces. Although I would recommend this one, below :)

How to Serve

- Serve warm, or at room temperature, or cold as an appetizer or side dish for meat. It will keep in a fridge for several days and can be great addition, or even main ingredient, for sandwiches.

Slow Roasted Eggplant Wedges

• 2 large eggplants
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp black pepper
• 4 tbs olive oil
• smoked paprika (optional)

Dipping Sause

• 1 cup good mayonnaise
• 2+ tsp sriratcha sauce (depending how spicy you like it)
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated or finely minced
• spicy Indian pickled vegetables, finely chopped (very optional :))

- Turn oven to 250F.

-  Cut off stem from your eggplants. Then slice each eggplant in half across (see pictures below). Slice each piece in half and then into wedges. 

- In a large bowl, shake eggplant with salt, pepper and olive oil.

- Turn over eggplant pieces into baking sheet. Turn pieces over, if needed, to have each wedge sitting skin down.

- Bake in preheated to 250F oven for about 1.5-2 hours until cooked through, surface is dry and edges are golden brown. Test with fork or toothpick, it should be very soft.

- Remove eggplant from an oven and let it cool down.

- Make sauce, mixing ingredients together.

- Sprinkle eggplant wedges with smoked paprika and serve with dipping sauce.

- Enjoy!



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IN PICTURES

No need for additional handling of eggplant, such as getting rid of bitterness by salting and such. Trust me - just slice, season and pop in an oven :)

Rather than meticulously transferring pieces by piece from a bowl, just dump eggplant into baking sheet and fix all those unruly  to upright position:)

My favorite pieces - those with a lot of seeds (in a middle). They have that bonus seedy texture I adore.