Roasted Eggplant With Delicious Sides – Easy Vegan Meals

This recipe is a spice infused roasted eggplant, with a creamy red pepper mixed bean hummus, vegan tzatziki and coriander bulgur. A perfectly easy meal for new vegans. Everything takes about 1 hour to prepare, but it is worth every minute in the kitchen making this. Below is a break down of what I have used for each of the sides and how to make it.

Eggplant is one of my favourite veggies! You can infuse any seasoning you want into the meat of the eggplant to match different cuisines. For Chinese dishes, it can be wok-fried or stewed into a claypot with peppercorn. For Indian dishes, it can be charred into a masala bahji with cumin or coriander powder. For Mediterranean dishes, it can be baked with some za’atar and sumac. It is an extremely versatile vegetable.

Having said that, eating one whole eggplant has a decent amount of protein:

• Calories: 136
• Carbs: 32g
• Protein: 5g
• Fat: 1g
• Fibre: 19g
• Iron: 7% (DV)
• Vitamin B6: 25% (DV)
• Vitamin C: 20% (DV)

*% Daily Values (DV) are based on a 2,000 calorie diet and values may be higher or lower depending on an individuals calorie intake

Easy Vegan Meal

For this recipe, I have roasted the eggplant in the oven for about 45 minutes with sumac, paprika, and sesame seeds. I paired the eggplant with coriander bulgur and a roasted red pepper sauce. This sauce is quite similar to hummus but I watered it down a little using the aquafaba from the chickpea can. I did this because I wanted a lighter sauce to go on the side that can easily blend with the bulgur. I’ve used two different varieties of beans for this dip which makes it even more tasty!

The Eggplant

In order to season the eggplant, you must slice the eggplant in diagonal lines. See the picture above. Once you slice the eggplant this way, the oil and spice you add will drip into the crevasses and infuse with the eggplant meat.

The Roasted Red Pepper Dip

To make this dip, I roasted the red pepper with the spices, garlic and shallots before blending it in the food processor. Alternatively, you can sauté it over the stovetop until the peppers are tender, then blend it with the beans. Heating up the peppers with the spices increases it’s flavour and brings about a smoother dip when you blend it together.

The Coriander Bulgur

If you have never eaten bulgur before, it tastes similar to couscous but it is far more nutritious. I have previously written about how nutritious it is.

In order to make bulgur, it needs to boiled like pasta. 1 cup usually takes me about 15-20 minutes but you would need to keep checking when it’s softened and ready to strain. After you boil the bulgur, strain and let it cool down. You can keep it in the fridge for a faster process. Once the bulgur has cooled down, sauté it with the coriander and lime (optional) until it turns fragrant.

The Vegan Tzatziki

For this last side, I’ve used coconut cream to replace the dairy typically used in tzatziki. This Greek condiment is typically made with strained yoghurt, garlic, and herbs such as mint, thyme, parsley or dill.

To make this vegan, you can use coconut yoghurt, soy cream or yoghurt. It tastes equally as refreshing and tangy, with a slight hint of sweetness from the coconut.

Roasted Eggplant With Delicious Sides – Easy Vegan Meals

The Veggie Wifey

Spice infused roasted eggplant, with a creamy red pepper mixed bean hummus, vegan tzatziki and coriander bulgur. A perfectly easy meal for new vegans!

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Servings 2 people

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Ingredients

Roasted Eggplant

• ▢ 1 Italian Eggplant or American Eggplant sliced in half
• ▢ 1/4 tsp sumac
• ▢ 1/4 tsp sesame seeds
• ▢ 1/4 tsp paprika
• ▢ 1/8 tsp Himalayan pink salt
• ▢ 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• ▢ pepper a pinch of pepper
• ▢ 2-3 tbsps olive oil

Red Pepper Mixed Bean Hummus

For Roasting

• ▢ 1/2 red pepper
• ▢ 2 tbsps olive oil
• ▢ 1 shallot cut in half
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic
• ▢ 1/4 tsp lemon zest
• ▢ 1/4 tsp paprika
• ▢ 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• ▢ 1/8 tsp Himalayan pink salt or more to taste
• ▢ 1/8 tsp black pepper

For Blending

• ▢ 1 cup chickpeas fill the cup with chickpeas, and fill the cup with the aquafaba
• ▢ 1/4 cup aquafaba from the chickpea can
• ▢ 1/2 cup beans kidney beans
• ▢ 1/4 tsp coriander powder or more to taste
• ▢ 1/2 tsp maple or agave syrup
• ▢ 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• ▢ more salt to taste if necessary

Vegan Tzatziki

• ▢ 4 tbsps coconut cream
• ▢ 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tbsp minced cucumber
• ▢ 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• ▢ 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ▢ 1 tsp chopped mint leaves/dill/parsley or thyme. Whatever you have access to.

Coriander Bulgur

• ▢ 2 tbsps chopped coriander
• ▢ 1/2 cup cooked bulgur

Extra Garnishes

• ▢ 2 tbsps pomogranate

Instructions

• Boil the bulgur with 1/2 tsp of salt. Cook until tender and strain. Set aside to cool
• Slice the eggplant in diagonal lines, and gently place this eggplant on a parchment covered baking tray.
• Rub all the seasoning on the top, with the olive oil. Ensure you let the seasoning sink into the crevasses of the sliced areas.
• Roast the eggplant for 30 minutes at 175°C.
• In a medium-sized mixing bowl, place the sliced red pepper with the roasting ingredients for seasoning (read the ingredients above carefully)
• In another parchment covered baking tray, pour the seasoned red pepper with the seasoning, and roast this for 15 minutes at 175°C.
• Once the red pepper is slightly charred around the edges, take it out of the oven and let it cool.
• Once it has cooled down, place this in a food processor with the blending ingredients (read the ingredients above carefully).
• Your red pepper dip is done. Set this aside. If you wish to season it with some additional salt, syrup or coriander powder, best to do it now.
• Once the eggplant is cooked, turn the oven off and open the oven door slightly to aerate the eggplant. Let it keep warm in the oven until you're ready to serve.
• Now, prepare your tzatziki. You simply need to mix all the ingredients together. Set this aside.
• In a heated frying pan, add your bulgur and coriander. Sauté this until it is fragrant. Set this aside.
• To plate, split your place into 3 areas. One side should be your eggplant, the other, your bulgur and the remaining space is for your red pepper dip. Gently pour the tzatziki on the top of your eggplant and garnish with pomegranate.

Notes

I hope you enjoy this dish. Please do tag me in your recreations so I can share/repost. Comment below if you have any questions, and don’t forget to rate this with the stars above. 

I hope you enjoy this dish. Please do tag me in your recreations so I can share/repost. Comment below if you have any questions, and don’t forget to rate this recipe with the stars above.