Zaalouk
Local name : زعلوك
Smoky grilled aubergine and tomato cooked down with garlic, cumin and paprika, eaten cold with bread. Morocco's best-loved cooked salad.
Photo : Tamorlan · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Method
- Prick the aubergines and grill them whole under the oven grill or over a flame for 25 minutes, turning, until the skin is blackened and the flesh has collapsed.
- Let them cool a little, peel them and roughly chop the flesh with a knife.
- Heat the oil in a sauté pan and fry the garlic for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, cumin, paprika, chilli and salt.
- Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, crushing the tomatoes with a spoon.
- Add the aubergine flesh and keep cooking for 10 to 15 minutes, mashing and stirring, until you have a thick purée that no longer weeps liquid.
- Off the heat, stir in the herbs and lemon juice. Taste and adjust the salt.
- Cool and serve at room temperature with a drizzle of olive oil and bread.
Zaalouk is one of the cooked salads that open a Moroccan meal, often alongside taktouka. Grilling the aubergines rather than boiling them gives the smoky depth that makes the dish.
