Roasted Eggplant, Caramelized and Flavorful

Name: Incredibly Flavorful Roasted Eggplant
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 1 eggplant (Large, unpeeled, ends trimmed); 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 2 tablespoons ghee; ¼ teaspoon black pepper; ½ teaspoon garlic powder

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There's so much flavor in this roasted eggplant! Seasoned with garlic and cooked in ghee, it's meaty and flavorful.

Roasted eggplant is served on a white plate.

Eggplants are marvelous. I love their tender, creamy texture and intense flavor, and this roasted eggplant recipe perfectly highlights that flavor. Salting the eggplant to draw water out and pan-frying it before placing it in the oven prevent sogginess and concentrate its unique flavor. This is one of my simplest eggplant recipes and one of the best. It works well as a side dish but is substantial enough to be served as a meatless main course.

Ingredients

Here's an overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.

Eggplant: I use one large eggplant in this recipe.
Kosher salt: Used to draw water out of the eggplant before baking it.
Ghee: Used for pan-frying the eggplant before roasting it. Ghee is clarified butter, simmered to separate the milk solids and water from the fat. It has a high smoke point, making it ideal for high-heat cooking.
To season: Black pepper and garlic powder.

Variations

You can use another type of fat suitable for high-heat cooking instead of ghee. Good options include avocado oil, refined coconut oil, and refined olive oil, marked as suitable for high heat.
Add more spices. I tried adding ½ teaspoon of onion powder, ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika, and a pinch of ground cumin. I liked all of these additions!

Instructions

Here's an overview of the steps needed to make this recipe. The detailed instructions are included in the recipe card below.

Prepare the Eggplant

Halve the eggplant lengthwise and slice a thin strip off the rounded edges to create flat eggplant halves. Make shallow cuts in a crosshatch pattern on the flesh side. Sprinkle the eggplant halves with kosher salt and let them rest for 30 minutes.

Making shallow cuts in a crosshatch pattern on the flesh side of the eggplant.

After 30 minutes, the eggplant will have visible water droplets on its surface. Pat it dry using paper towels.

Cook the Eggplant

Cook the eggplant in ghee for about 5 minutes until the bottom is browned. Turn the heat off, flip the eggplant, and season it.

Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven. Roast the eggplant for 25-30 minutes until tender. Serve immediately.

Featured Comment

That was the best eggplant recipe I have ever had. I followed the directions almost exactly, I use olive oil, not ghee. And I added mozzarella cheese for the last few minutes of baking. I liked that it was cooked at a very high temperature, in the same pan it was fried in, I think that makes a difference. It was completely cooked and that works for me with eggplant. I did not eat the skin, but I liked that it was cooked in the skin. - Diane Schroeder
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Recipe Tips

If the pan becomes too hot when you cook the eggplant, reduce the heat to medium.
Add more ghee if the pan becomes too dry. Eggplant has a spongy texture that absorbs oil rapidly. Salting it helps, but it's still possible that you would need to add an extra tablespoon of ghee to the pan. It happens to me every once in a while.
It might be tempting to skip salting the eggplant, but please don't. This step is crucial to the success of this recipe.
The same goes for pan-frying the eggplant before roasting it. While not as important as salting, it dramatically improves the outcome.
There's no need to season the eggplant with additional salt after the initial step of salting.

Recipe FAQs

Why do you salt the eggplant?

The salt draws water out, and the crosshatch pattern helps the salt penetrate the eggplant. This process eliminates excess water, prevents sogginess, and helps the eggplant brown and caramelize.

Should I peel the eggplant before roasting?

There's no need to peel it. The peel of a mature eggplant can be slightly bitter, but salting and roasting it removes that bitterness.

How do you prevent the eggplant from being bitter?

Salting the eggplant and roasting it at a high temperature help mitigate any bitterness.

What is better, grilled or roasted eggplant?

Both are excellent! I love this recipe for grilled eggplant, and it's quicker than this one, but if I had to choose, I would go with roasted because it's so wonderfully caramelized.

Serving Suggestions

I typically serve roasted eggplant as a side dish. Since I cook it in a 450°F oven, I like to serve it with a main dish I can cook in the same oven, such as:

As mentioned above, eggplant is substantial and meaty enough to be served as a main course. You can create an eggplant sandwich with almond flour bread. Condiments that go well with eggplant are sriracha mayo, tahini sauce, and tzatziki.

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. Enjoy them cold, like antipasti, or reheat them covered in the microwave.

Recipe Card

5 from 6 votes

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Incredibly Flavorful Roasted Eggplant

There's so much flavor in this roasted eggplant! Seasoned with garlic and coated in ghee, it's meaty and flavorful.

Prep Time40

Cook Time30

Total Time1 10

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Servings: servings

Calories: 192kcal

Author: Vered DeLeeuw

Video

Ingredients

▢ 1 eggplant - Large, unpeeled, ends trimmed
▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt
▢ 2 tablespoons ghee
▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper
▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

Halve the eggplant lengthwise and then slice a thin strip off the rounded edges in the same direction to create flat eggplant halves.
Make shallow cuts in a crosshatch pattern on the flesh side. Sprinkle the eggplants with 1 teaspoon of salt and let them rest for 30 minutes. The salt will draw water out. The crosshatch pattern helps the salt penetrate the eggplant.
After 30 minutes, the eggplant will have visible water droplets on its surface. Pat it dry using paper towels.
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Heat the ghee over medium-high heat in a large, 12-inch, oven-safe skillet. I use a cast-iron skillet.
Place the two eggplant halves in the skillet, flesh side down. Cook the eggplant for about 5 minutes until the bottom is browned. If the pan becomes too hot, reduce the heat to medium. Add more ghee if the pan becomes too dry.
Turn the heat off. Flip the eggplant. Sprinkle it with black pepper and garlic powder.
Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven. Roast the eggplant for 25-30 minutes until tender.
Serve immediately.

Notes

It might be tempting to skip salting the eggplant, but please don't. This step is crucial to the success of this recipe.
The same goes for pan-frying the eggplant before roasting it. While not as important as salting, it dramatically improves the outcome.
There's no need to peel the eggplant before roasting. The peel of a mature eggplant can be slightly bitter, but salting and roasting it removes that bitterness.
There's no need to season the eggplant with additional salt after the initial step of salting.
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. Enjoy them cold, like antipasti, or reheat them covered in the microwave.
When calculating the nutrition info, I assumed that half the salt would remain in the dish.

Nutrition per Serving

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Disclaimers

Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.

Roasted Eggplant

Ingredients

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