What was in Jan's Pan?
August
One of the perks of heading up the Guild of Food Writers Awards, which celebrates the best published food material every year, is that I receive a lot of the material that is entered for judging. This means that I have the opportunity to test out recipes and read the work of some of the best food writers in the country. I find it hard to part from many of these lovely books, but somehow I manage to squeeze a few extra onto my already crammed bookshelves. I love perusing my library for inspiration and this aubergine salad was the perfect accompaniment to a slow cooked lamb shoulder served for a relaxed dinner party with school friends recently.
This salad comes from Leon Big Salads by Rebecca Seal and involves charring aubergines over a gas flame until the flesh is just soft enough to scoop out, and it imparts a delicious smoky flavour. It’s then swirled with yoghurt to make a loose baba ganoush style salad, sprinkled with pomegranate seeds to introduce pops of juicy flavour. This isn’t strictly cooked in a pan, but could just as easily be roasted in a hot oven until the skin blisters and chars and the flesh softens.
To get the best out of aubergine it must be cooked properly, and those who say they don’t like the texture should try this method, as it’s soft but not at all greasy. It’s loosely swirled with a simple yoghurt dressing, and sprinkled with lots of herbs and pomegranate seeds. A spoonful of tahini stirred into the dressing would add another dimension next time I make it. Which will be soon, as it’s totally addictive…