Grilled Eggplant Aubergine Parcels Recipes

GRILLED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Mix soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil together in a small bowl. Coat eggplant slices in sauce. Place on preheated grill, carefully, as they will flame up.
• Cook each eggplant slice until deep brown, about 5 minutes per side.

BALSAMIC GRILLED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat a grill or a grill pan, over medium-high heat. I like to use a dual-contact electric grill when making this recipe.
• Trim the eggplant edges and slice crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. You should get about 12 rounds out of a large eggplant.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brush the eggplant rounds with the mixture, on both sides. Set aside any remaining sauce.
• Grill the eggplant slices until golden brown and fork-tender, about 5 minutes on each side. In my dual-contact electric grill, I grill 5 minutes on one side, then 2 minutes on the second side.
• Brush the eggplant slices with the remaining marinade and serve.

GRILLED MARINATED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Finely chop the parsley with the capers and garlic. Add the oregano and peperoncini and chop everything together. Put the mixture in a bowl, stir in the oil, season with salt and pepper, and reserve.
• Preheat an outdoor charcoal or gas grill or a grill pan until smoking hot.
• Put enough eggplant slices on the grill to cover it without crowding. Cook the eggplant until well marked, 3 to 6 minutes, then turn the slices over. Cook until tender, about 3 minutes more. Remove the eggplant from the grill.
• Pour the vinegar into a shallow bowl. While still hot, dip each eggplant slice into the vinegar and set it aside on a plate. Continue grilling and dipping the eggplant until all the slices are cooked and seasoned.
• Spoon 2 tablespoons of the parsley mixture onto a platter and spread it evenly with the back of a spoon. Arrange half of the grilled eggplant on the parsley in a single layer. Smear each slice of eggplant with more parsley. Place a second layer of eggplant on top and spread the remaining parsley on it. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and set aside to marinate at room temperature for about 2 hours (or refrigerate for longer). Serve at room temperature.
• Chef's notes:
• You could make the parsley mixture in a food processor, but I don't. I find hand chopping gives me the somewhat drier texture I prefer.
• For this recipe, I don't salt or oil the eggplant; I grill it dry. This way, it has a nice chewy texture. I marinate the eggplant as soon as it comes off the grill so the flavor of the marinade penetrates.

PERFECT GRILLED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Meanwhile, heat a charcoal or gas grill to medium-high heat. You should be able to hold your hand about an inch above the cooking grate for 3 to 4 seconds before pulling it away from the heat.

MELTING-MIDDLE AUBERGINE PARCELS

Steps:

• To make the dressing, blitz all the ingredients, except the oil, in a food processor; then, with the motor still running, drizzle in the oil. Tip into a bowl and set aside.
• Trim off either end of the aubergines and discard. Slice the aubergines lengthways into 16 slices in total. Over a barbecue (or on a hot griddle pan), heavily mark the aubergine slices on each side to soften, then lift into a dish, drizzle with a little olive oil and season.
• Working methodically, make little stacks of a mozzarella slice, tomato slice and basil leaf. Wrap each stack in a grilled aubergine slice, then wrap a second slice in the other direction to try to cover the gaps and make a little bundle. Secure each parcel with a couple of cocktail sticks. Can be kept in the fridge overnight.
• Place the parcels on the barbecue and continue to char on each side until the cheese just starts to ooze out. Lift onto a platter, drizzle with the pesto dressing and serve. See time saving tip, below left.

GRILLED EGGPLANT (AUBERGINE) PARMESAN

Steps:

• Stir cheese mix, breadcrumbs, and 1/3 cup basil in medium bowl to blend.
• Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Sprinkle eggplant and tomatoes with salt and pepper. Brush 1 side of eggplant slices with some oil. Grill, oiled side down, until bottom side is tender and grill marks appear, about 3 minutes. Brush second side of eggplant slices with more oil; turn over and top grilled side with tomatoes, then cheese mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Drizzle with remaining oil. Cover and grill until tomatoes are tender and cheese melts, about 7 minutes. Transfer eggplant slices to plates. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons basil and serve.

GRILLED EGGPLANT (AUBERGINE) PARCELS

Steps:

• Remove the stalks from the eggplants and slice lengthwise into 1/4" slices.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the eggplant slices for 2 minutes.
• Drain and pat slices dry with paper towel.
• Take 2 eggplant slices and arranged in a cross.
• Assemble with a slice of tomato in the center, season with salt & pepper, next a basil leaf and then a slice of mozzarella, another basil leaf, another tomato and more seasoning.
• Fold the ends of the eggplant slices around the filling.
• Chill the parcels for 20 minutes in fridge.
• To make the sauce, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, tomato paste, and lemon juice.
• Season with salt & pepper.
• Baste the eggplant parcels with sauce and grill for about 10 minutes, turning once.