Baba ghanoush
{{short description|Levantine dish of cooked eggplant}}
{{protection padlock|small=yes}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox food
| name = Baba ghanoush
| alternate_name = Baba ganoush, baba ghanouj
| image = Baba Ganoush 05of05 (8735238183).jpg
| image_size =
| caption =
| associated_cuisine = Iraq, Armenia,{{Cite web|url=https://www.thearmeniankitchen.com/2011/11/baba-ghanoush.html|title=Baba Ghanoush|work=The Armenian Kitchen|date=4 November 2011|access-date=May 19, 2020}} Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Palestine, Greece, Egypt, Tunisia, and Turkey
| place_of_origin = Levant{{Britannica|author=LeBlanc, Beverly; McNamee, Gregory Lewis|id=2033086|title=baba ghanoush|access-date=April 5, 2022}}
| course = Appetizer
| served =
| main_ingredient = Eggplant, olive oil
| cookbook = Baba Ganoush
}}
{{Infobox food
| name = Mutabbal
| alternate_name = Moutabbal, m'tabbal
| image = Baba ganoush and pita.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Mutabbal and pita bread
| place_of_origin = Levant
| course = Appetizer
| served =
| main_ingredient = Eggplant, olive oil
}}
Baba ghanoush ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|b|ɑː|b|ə|_|ɡ|ə|ˈ|n|uː|ʃ}} {{respell|BAH|bə|_|gə|NOOSH}}, {{IPAc-en|UKalso|-|_|ɡ|æ|ˈ|n|uː|ʃ}} {{respell|-_|gan|OOSH}}, {{IPAc-en|USalso|-|_|ɡ|ə|ˈ|n|uː|ʒ}} {{respell|-_|gə|NOOZH}};{{Cite OED|baba ganoush|5274143737}}{{Cite American Heritage Dictionary|baba ghanouj|access-date=25 April 2019}}[https://web.archive.org/web/20190425111057/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/baba_ghanouj "baba ghanouj"] (US) and {{Cite dictionary |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/baba+ganoush |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200322185721/https://www.lexico.com/definition/baba_ganoush |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-03-22 |title=baba ganoush |dictionary=Lexico UK English Dictionary |publisher=Oxford University Press}}{{Cite Merriam-Webster|baba ghanoush|access-date=25 April 2019}} {{Langx|ar|بابا غنوج|bābā ġannūj}} {{pronunciation|Q1072192-ar.ogg|listen|help=no}}), also spelled baba ganoush or baba ghanouj,{{cite encyclopedia | title = Baba Ghanouj | encyclopedia = Encyclopedia of Jewish Food | author = Gil Marks | publisher = Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | year = 2010 | isbn = 9780544186316 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gFK_yx7Ps7cC&pg=PT162 }} is a Levantine appetizer consisting of finely chopped roasted eggplant, olive oil, lemon juice, various seasonings, and tahini.{{Cite book|section=Baba ganoush|date=September 2006|title=Oxford English Dictionary|publisher=Oxford University Press|edition=3rd|quote=A Middle Eastern (originally Lebanese) dish of puréed roasted aubergine, garlic, and tahini.}} The eggplant is traditionally roasted, baked or broiled over an open flame before peeling so that the pulp is soft and has a smoky taste.{{cite book|last1=Karam Khayat|first1=Marie|last2=Clark Keatinge|first2=Margaret|title=Food from the Arab World|publisher=Khayats|location=Beirut, Lebanon}} It is a typical meze (starter) of the regional cuisine, often served as a side to a main meal and as a dip for pita bread.
A very similar dish is mutabbal ({{langx|ar|links=no|متبل||spiced}}), which is sometimes said to be a spicier version of baba ghanoush.
Etymology
The word {{Transliteration|ar|bābā}} in Arabic is a term of endearment for 'father', while {{Transliteration|ar|Ġannūj}} could be a personal name. The word combination is also interpreted as 'father of coquetry' or 'indulged/pampered/flirtatious daddy' or 'spoiled old daddy'.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v5TTAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA34|title=The Arabian Nights Cookbook: From Lamb Kebabs to Baba Ghanouj, Delicious Homestyle Arabian Cooking|last=Salloum|first=Habeeb|date=2012-02-28|publisher=Tuttle Publishing|isbn=9781462905249|language=en}} However, it is not certain whether the word {{Transliteration|ar|bābā}} refers to an actual person indulged by the dish or to the eggplant ({{Transliteration|ar|bāḏinjān}} or {{Transliteration|ar|bātinjān}} in Arabic).
Varieties
Dishes consisting of mashed eggplant are common in cuisines from West Africa to Russia.
Eastern Arabian cuisine versions of the dish vary slightly from those of the Levant by spicing it with coriander and cumin; those versions might be minimally spiced and topped with thinly chopped parsley or coriander leaves.{{Cite web|url=https://yourmiddleeast.com/2013/01/07/baba-ganoush-quintessentially-levantine/|title=Baba Ganoush: Quintessentially Levantine|date=2013-01-07|website=Your Middle East|language=en-US|access-date=2019-07-29|archive-date=29 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190729232912/https://yourmiddleeast.com/2013/01/07/baba-ganoush-quintessentially-levantine/|url-status=dead}}
In Syria, the dish is often mixed with sheep cheese, making it creamier.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=October 2020 |title=Baba ganoush ou caviar d'aubergines |url=https://www.panierdesaison.com/2020/10/baba-ganoush-caviar-aubergines.html |access-date=2023-02-28 |website=Panier de Saison: recettes, accords mets-vins, jardinage et tourisme local |language=fr}}
In Turkey, the dish is known as {{lang|tr|babaganuş}} or {{lang|tr|abugannuş}}. While the ingredients vary from region to region, the essentials (eggplants, tahini, garlic, lemon) are generally the same.{{Citation needed|date=September 2022}}
In Armenia, the dish is known as {{Transliteration|hy|mutabal}}. The essential ingredients in Armenian mutabal are eggplant, tahini, garlic, lemon, and onion; most Armenians also add cumin.{{Citation needed|date=September 2022}}
in Greece, a similar dish is known as Μελιτζανοσαλάτα (Melitzanosalata; literally translating to Eggplant Salad). However, the dish does not contain tahini, instead just containing the eggplant itself (hence the name), some olive oil and lemon juice, and spices like garlic and onion, with occasional spices like garlic and pepper flakes.{{Cite web |last=Karadsheh |first=Suzy |date=2020-09-02 |title=Melitzanosalata: Greek Eggplant Dip (tips & recipe) |url=https://www.themediterraneandish.com/melitzanosalata-recipe/ |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=The Mediterranean Dish |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Greek roasted eggplant dip - Melitzanosalata |url=https://akispetretzikis.com/en/recipe/2656/melitzanosalata |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=Akis Petretzikis |language=en}} The dish is extremely popular during the great 40-day Lenten fast as it provides a non-animal-based alternative to dips like Tzatziki during the fast. This is due to Greece being a very religious Orthodox Christian country.
In Romania, a similar dish is known as {{lang|ro|salată de vinete}} ('eggplant salad'). Like the Greek dish of Melitzanosalata, it lacks tahini and is made from finely chopped roasted eggplant, finely chopped onions, sunflower oil (explicitly not olive oil{{Cite book |title=Carte de bucate (Cookbook)|last=Marin |first=Sanda |publisher=Editura Orizonturi |year=1995 |isbn=973-95583-2-1 |location=București (Bucharest) |pages=31–32 |language=Romanian}}{{Cite book |title=Carte de bucate (Cookbook)|last=Jurcovan|first=Silvia |publisher=Editura Humanitas|year=2012|isbn=978-973-50-3475-7 |location=București (Bucharest) |pages=90–91 |language=Romanian}} because it would make the dish bitter), salt and, optionally, mayonnaise.{{Cite book |title=Meine rumänischen Spezialitäten (My Romanian Specialties)|last=Hansen|first=Eliza|publisher=Ed. Christians|year=1973|isbn=3-7672-0229-8 |location=Hamburg|pages=10 |language=German}}
The dish became part of Israeli cuisine during the 1949-1959 period of austerity in Israel when it was adopted from the cuisines of neighboring Arab countries. It was used as a meat substitute and remained popular after the economic crisis ended. It was commonly used for snacks or to serve to unexpected guests, eventually becoming a "cultural icon," according to food writer and historian Gil Marks.
See also
- List of dips
- Eggplant salads and appetizers, an overview of similar dishes prepared around the world
- List of Arab salads
- List of eggplant dishes
- List of hors d'oeuvre
- List of Middle Eastern dishes
References
{{Reflist}}
Bibliography
{{commons category}}
{{Wiktionary|baba ganoush}}
- {{cite book|first=Elizabeth|last=David|date=1950|title=A Book of Mediterranean Food|publisher=Alfred A. Knopf|isbn= 0-394-49153-X}}
- {{cite book|last=Levy|first=F.|title=Feast from the Mideast|publisher=Harper Collins|date=2003|isbn=0-06-009361-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/feastfrommideast00levy }}
- {{cite book|first=Nicolas|last=Trépanier|title=Foodways and Daily Life in Medieval Anatolia: A New Social History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ciXNBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA129|date=30 November 2014|publisher=University of Texas Press|isbn=978-0-292-75929-9}}
{{Cuisine of Lebanon}}
{{Cuisine of the Levant}}
{{eggplant dishes}}
{{portal bar|Food}}
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