Cooking with Aubergine
Recipes with Aubergine — Morocco's Smoky, Silky Vegetable Star
Aubergine (badinjan) is one of Morocco's best-loved vegetables, prized for the silky, smoky flesh it gives when grilled or fried. Its most famous outing is zaalouk, the cooked salad of aubergine and tomato mashed with garlic and paprika that graces countless tables. Aubergine also fries into tender salads, melts into vegetable tagines, and soaks up the warm spices around it beautifully. This guide covers aubergine's role in the Moroccan kitchen, the dishes it stars in, how to grill and prepare it, and how to choose the best specimens at market.
How Moroccans use aubergine
Aubergine is usually grilled, roasted or fried to bring out its smoky depth and silky texture before being seasoned. For zaalouk, whole aubergines are charred or roasted until collapsing, then the flesh is scooped, chopped and cooked down with tomato, garlic, cumin and paprika. Fried aubergine slices become a simple, moreish salad dressed with garlic and spice. In tagines, chunks of aubergine soak up the sauce and turn meltingly tender. Because it drinks oil readily, cooks often grill or salt it first to keep the finished dish from turning greasy while still tasting rich.
The best Moroccan recipes with aubergine
Zaalouk — the classic smoky aubergine and tomato salad, Morocco's most famous aubergine dish. Fried aubergine salad — tender slices with garlic, cumin and a little vinegar or lemon. Vegetable or meat tagines with aubergine soaking up the sauce. Briouat or stuffed rolls in some kitchens. Aubergine with charmoula, baked or grilled. Start with zaalouk — grilling the aubergine until it collapses, then cooking the smoky flesh down with tomato and spice, is one of the most rewarding techniques in the Moroccan repertoire.
Grilling, salting and preparing
For the smokiest flavour, char whole aubergines directly over a flame or under a hot grill until the skin blackens and the flesh slumps, then scoop it out. If frying, consider salting the sliced or cubed aubergine for twenty minutes and patting it dry, which draws out moisture, seasons it and reduces how much oil it drinks. Cook aubergine thoroughly — undercooked, it is spongy and bitter; properly cooked, it is silky and sweet. In tagines add it partway through so it turns tender without dissolving entirely. A good glug of olive oil suits its richness, but grilling first keeps it from becoming greasy.
Buying and storing aubergine
Choose aubergines that are firm, glossy and heavy for their size, with taut skin and a fresh green stem — dull, wrinkled or light ones are old and can taste bitter and seedy. Smaller specimens tend to have fewer seeds and sweeter flesh. Moroccan markets sell them plentifully and cheaply in season. Store aubergines in a cool place and use within a few days, as they do not keep long and turn spongy with age. They are sensitive to cold, so the fridge is not ideal for long storage; a cool, shaded spot suits them better.
Cook's tips
- Char whole aubergines over a flame until collapsing for the smokiest zaalouk.
- Salt sliced aubergine for 20 minutes and pat dry to cut bitterness and oil absorption.
- Cook it thoroughly — undercooked aubergine is spongy and bitter, cooked it turns silky.
- Choose small, firm, glossy specimens; they have fewer seeds and sweeter flesh.
- Use within a few days and keep in a cool spot; aubergine does not store long.
Questions about cooking with Aubergine
What is zaalouk?
Zaalouk is Morocco's best-known aubergine dish — a cooked salad of grilled or roasted aubergine and tomato, mashed and simmered with garlic, cumin, paprika, coriander and olive oil until thick and smoky. Served warm or cold with bread, it is a staple of the small-salad spread that opens a Moroccan meal.
Do I need to salt aubergine before cooking?
It is not always essential with modern varieties, but salting sliced aubergine for twenty minutes and patting it dry does draw out moisture, reduce any bitterness, and cut how much oil it absorbs when frying. For grilled or roasted whole aubergine in zaalouk, salting is unnecessary, since charring achieves the flavour you want.
How do I get a smoky flavour in aubergine dishes?
Char the whole aubergines directly over a gas flame, on a barbecue, or under a very hot grill until the skin blackens and blisters and the flesh collapses. Then scoop out the smoky flesh. This direct-fire charring gives zaalouk and similar dishes their signature smokiness, which oven-roasting alone cannot fully match.
Why is my aubergine bitter?
Bitterness usually comes from old aubergines or from undercooking. Choose firm, glossy, fresh specimens, salt sliced flesh if frying, and always cook aubergine through until silky — undercooked aubergine is both spongy and bitter. Smaller aubergines with fewer seeds tend to be sweeter and less prone to bitterness than large, old ones.
How should I store aubergines?
Keep them in a cool, shaded spot and use within a few days, as aubergines do not keep long and turn spongy and bitter with age. They are sensitive to cold, so long fridge storage is not ideal, though a day or two in the fridge is fine. Choose firm, glossy fruit and cook them while fresh.
Cook these dishes with a local in Marrakech
Learn to handle aubergine the Moroccan way in a hands-on cooking class, or taste it across the medina on a guided food tour.