Barbecued eggplant with oregano and ají molido

Adding a little something else to your asado (barbecue) like this eggplant dish makes for a great addition to the meat.

Credit: Rachel Tolosa Paz

• serves

  4

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 2 large eggplants (aubergines)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp ají molido (dried capsicum/pepper flakes)
• sea salt
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• small handful finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• lemon wedges, to serve

Instructions

1. Preheat a barbecue hotplate to high.

2. Slice the eggplants into 1 cm (½ in) thick rounds. Brush each side with the olive oil, then transfer to the hotplate. Sprinkle the oregano, ají molido and a little sea salt over the slices and cook for 5 minutes, until the bottom of the eggplant is golden and tender. Turn the slices over and cook for a further 2–3 minutes, then remove from the heat and arrange, oregano side up, on a serving plate. Drizzle over the extra virgin olive oil just before serving and sprinkle with the parsley.

3. Serve with lemon wedges on the side for squeezing over.

Recipe from The Food of Argentina by Ross Dobson and Rachel Tolosa Paz, Smith Street Books, RRP $44.99

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.