Melitzanosalata Recipe | Sauced

Updated March 31, 2025

When gripped in a heatwave, as most of the country was last week, the grill might not be be the first place you'd want to be. At the same time, when I was considering making this melitzanosalata, a Greek roasted eggplant dip, the prospect of having the oven going seemed even worse.

Most recipes for melitzanosalata have you roast the eggplant in the oven for 30 minutes until it's completely soft, but after grilling the eggplant and avoiding that oven heat, I'd argue it's grill or nothing for this dip (the grill is the more traditional method anyway).

There are very few ingredients in this dip—roasted eggplant, lemon juice, garlic olive oil, parsley, salt, and pepper. The grill added a smokiness that you can definitely taste. If you went the oven route, you'd miss that flavor altogether.

The chilled end product had a nice cooling effect, with creamy smokiness balancing the fresh lemon and parsley. It's a refreshing pay-off for the heat endured while making it.

Recipe Details

Melitzanosalata Recipe | Sauced

Prep 30 mins

Cook 30 mins

Active 30 mins

Cooling Time 10 mins

Total 70 mins

Serves 8 servings

Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

2 large eggplants, each poked uniformly over surface with fork
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread the coals evenly over entire surface of coal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place eggplants on grill and cook until soft throughout, about 30 minutes, turning eggplants every 5 minutes. Transfer eggplants to a cutting board and let sit until cool enough to handle, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Split eggplants in half and spoon out pulp into a colander placed in a bowl or in sink; discard skin. Let pulp drain for 5 to 10 minutes.
Transfer eggplant to workbowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Add garlic and lemon juice and pulse to combine. With the food processor running, slowly add olive oil in a steady stream through the feed tube. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate for one hour, then serve.

Special equipment

Grill, Food Processor

Dips

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
209	Calories
14g	Fat
22g	Carbs
2g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories	209
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 14g	18%
Saturated Fat 2g	10%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 46mg	2%
Total Carbohydrate 22g	8%
Dietary Fiber 6g	23%
Total Sugars 8g
Protein 2g
Vitamin C 9mg	46%
Calcium 24mg	2%
Iron 1mg	5%
Potassium 333mg	7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.