Flatbread with eggplant, harissa capsicum and tahini yoghurt

Name: Flatbread with eggplant, harissa capsicum and tahini yoghurt
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 4-6
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: 4-6 flatbreads (); 4 small-medium eggplants; mint leaves and chopped flat-leaf parsley, to serve

Katrina Meynink

February 19, 2021

Blitz the eggplant skin through the yoghurt for extra smokiness.Katrina Meynink

Time:1-2 hoursServes:4-6

I love the smoky drama of this emerging on a flatbread. All the colours and textures, the sauces and the fresh herbs are nothing short of glorious. While you might think you can't be bothered slowly charring some eggplant, once you do, you will never want to cook it any other way. For a busy weeknight you could use store-bought flatbreads and make the capsicum harissa ahead of time – it holds wonderfully in the fridge for up to a week.

Ingredients

4-6 flatbreads (recipe here)
4 small-medium eggplants
mint leaves and chopped flat-leaf parsley, to serve

Harissa capsicum

¾ cup roughly chopped red capsicum (from about ¾ of a capsicum)
1 tomato, cored, chopped
1 tsp harissa (or to taste)
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper to season

Tahini yoghurt

1 garlic clove, crushed
1 cup Greek-style yoghurt
1 tbsp tahini (or to taste)
squeeze of lemon juice

Method

1. Prepare the flatbreads as per this recipe (or use store-bought breads).
2. Preheat a barbecue grill scorching high – as high as it will go. Prick the eggplants in a few places then place on the grill. Leave them for 15 minutes or so, before turning and leaving again. Turn them every 15 minutes to char evenly all the way around – cook until the skin is black, and the pulp is beginning to collapse. This can take up to 40 minutes depending on your heating element.
3. Very carefully and gently, remove the eggplant from the heat and place on a drip tray in the sink. Allow to cool and drain completely – those residual juices are often quite bitter.
4. Once cool, carefully peel away the burnt exterior, trying to keep the eggplant shape intact. If you love things extra smoky, reserve the burnt skin to blend through the tahini yoghurt.
5. For the harissa capsicum, add the ingredients to a blender and blitz to a runny, sauce-like consistency. Set aside until ready to use – this can last in the fridge in a screwtop jar for 1 week.
6. To make the tahini yoghurt, combine the garlic, yoghurt, tahini and lemon juice in a bowl and whisk with a fork. (If you decide to use the reserved burnt eggplant skin, blitz all the ingredients in a blender instead – it will look black and grey in spots.)
7. Warm the flatbreads. Gently smear the base with the tahini yoghurt and place an eggplant onto the yoghurt, trying to keep its shape. Drizzle with the harissa capsicum mixture and season generously. Scatter with mint and parsley and serve.
Katrina Meynink's no-yeast flatbread recipe
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