Turkish Grilled Eggplant and Pepper Salad with Walnuts Recipe
This salad is a bowl full of smoky eggplant, sweet peppers and crunchy nuts, drizzled with a lemon-garlic dressing. In Turkey, similar appetizers, called meze, are served before the main course or for sharing while chatting. At home, it works perfectly as a colorful starter for a get-together with friends.
The combination of smoky roasted eggplant and peppers with crunchy walnuts and a bright lemon-garlic dressing gives this simple salad a deep, complex flavor reminiscent of Turkish meze bars.
Chef's tips
Roast the vegetables until the skins are really charred—this is what gives the salad its characteristic smoky note. If you have a grill or gas stove, you can char the peppers and eggplants directly over the flame for even more flavor.
How to serve
Serve in a shallow bowl, generously sprinkled with parsley and nuts. Offer warm flatbread or pita on the side and a bowl of thick yogurt drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with a little salt and sumac or chili flakes.
Ingredients
- eggplant - 2 pieces
- pepper - 2 pieces
- tomatoes - 200 g
- onion - 1 piece
- walnuts - 40 g
- parsley finely chopped - 3 tablespoons
- olive oil - 3 tablespoons
- lemon - 1 piece
- garlic - 1 clove
- wine vinegar - 1 tablespoon
- salt - 0.75 teaspoons
- black pepper - 0.5 teaspoons
Preparation
- Wash and dry the eggplants, then prick them in several places with a fork. Wash and dry the peppers.
- Preheat the oven to 220°C with the grill or top heat function. Place the eggplants and peppers on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes, turning the vegetables every few minutes, until the pepper skins are well darkened and charred in spots and the eggplants are soft and slightly collapsed.
- Transfer the baked peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate or foil for 10 minutes to loosen the skins. Then peel off the skins, remove the cores and seeds, and cut the flesh into strips.
- Let the eggplants cool for a few minutes, cut them lengthwise and scoop out the soft flesh with a spoon, discarding the skins. Cut the flesh into smaller pieces.
- Halve the cherry tomatoes. Slice the red onion into thin slivers. Coarsely chop the walnuts.
- In a small bowl, make the dressing: mix the olive oil, juice of half a lemon, vinegar, finely chopped or pressed garlic, salt and pepper. Taste and add more lemon juice if needed.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and onion. Pour over the dressing and gently toss so the vegetables don’t fall apart.
- Finally, sprinkle the salad with chopped parsley and walnuts. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Storage
No storage information available for this dish.
This salad is one of those dishes that taste like summer holidays: simple ingredients, lots of roasting and a bright, fresh dressing. It’s great for sharing and always disappears quickly from the table.
