It’s been quite a while since I actually posted something about cooking on the blog, but it’s not because I don’t cook anymore, it’s mainly because what I cook is so delicious that I don’t get to take photos in time 😀 But this salad I have been cooking all summer long and every one who hears about it wants to know the recipe. It’s quite famous and traditional in Romania, but I haven’t seen it being cooked anywhere else I went outside the country.

The eggplant salad is a very good option for both vegetarians and vegans, especially during summer time when you find  fresh eggplants in the market. But also you can put in the freezer and prepare it during the winter months. I say is good for both vegetarians and vegans because it can be prepared with or without the mayonnaise.

Here are the ingredients:

– eggplants (I normally buy about 2 kilos of fresh eggplants)

– olive oil

– for mayonnaise : two eggs (one boiled), a spoon of mustard, a spoon of sour-cream and sunflower oil.

I start by putting the eggplants in the oven and let them bake for about 1 hour and a half. This step can be done either in the oven, or on the grill if you have one, both ways are acceptable. You know they are baked when the crust becomes softer and also the juice starting coming out of the eggplants.

After taking them out of the oven and letting them cool down for about 30 minutes, I start peeling them and putting what’s inside in a bowl to drain.

I usually use the bowl I also use to drain boiled pasta.

I leave the eggplants like this for about one hour – one hour and a half and then chop them and add them in a bowl. I also add some salt now and mix everything together.

In the meantime I prepare the mayonnaise. I put one boiled yolk and one fresh yolk and a spoon of mustard and mix them together with oil. At the end I also add a spoon of sour cream and mix the whole thing together. The sour cream is not mandatory, but it helps the mayonnaise have a milder taste.

When this is done, I mix the eggplants with the mayonnaise and it’s done. If you like you can also finely chop an onion and add in the salad.

There is also the option without the mayonnaise, you just chop the eggplants, put some salt and a bit of olive oil and mix everything together. For this as well you can add a finely chopped onion.

As I said before, this is a very good option for winter. You can just bake the eggplants, let them drain and add them in plastic bags and put them in the fridge and use them whenever you want.