Moroccan-Israeli Eggplant Salad (salat hatzilim morokai, in Hebrew) is a rich, savory, and flavorful salad of eggplant, red bell peppers, tomatoes, and delicious spices.
It can be eaten as a side salad, used as a dip or a spread.
It’s also terrific in a pita or lafa (Iraqi pita) with falafel and shawarma!
And it’s vegan!
This Moroccan-Israeli Eggplant Salad is a delicious dish of eggplant, tomatoes, and red peppers in an amazing savory sauce with spices that are popular in the Middle East.
This eggplant salad is so good and so simple to make, and they’re particularly popular in Israel where Israelis eat them with lunch and dinner, in their street food, at BBQs and gatherings, picnics. Really, just any time.
Have it alone, as a spread, or as a dip. In a pita or lafa (Iraqi pita), in a falafel or shawarma.
Or… just eat it with a fork!
What does it mean when recipes say “to taste” about an ingredient?
When recipes say “to taste,” it means that you can put in as little or as much as you like to your own taste. Some recipes have many ingredients that a cook can adjust to their own taste when cooking (not so much when baking though).
The best way to calculate what your taste is with a recipe that you are not yet familiar with is to first taste the dish and then add the “to taste” ingredient GRADUALLY, a little at a time—a splash of this or a pinch of that—until the dish is just the way you like it. Make sure to stir the ingredient after each time you add it so that the flavor will distribute evenly and become part of the dish. Then taste again. Repeat until you reach your personal preference.
Note: If you plan on using the recipe again, it is highly recommended to make a note of what and how much you added so that you can refer to it next time.
What does it mean when a recipe says that an ingredient is “optional”?
If an ingredient is “optional,” it means that you can add it in or not based on your own preference. An optional ingredient can be flavor related (i.e., salty, sweet, spicy, etc.), appearance related (garnish), or even something like nuts or chocolate chips in baking.
What does “savory” mean?
“Savory” refers to foods that are not sweet, such as foods that taste salty, spicy, or herbal.
A little information about bell peppers
Bell peppers come in different colors, such as green, red, orange, yellow (the most common)…and, believe it or not, white brown, striped, and purple.
Peppers are commonly used in foods, salads, as side dishes, toppings or – if you are like my son – a snack.
Peppers are native to Mexico, Central America, and South America. Spanish explorers brought pepper seeds back to Spain with them in 1943. From Spain, peppers spread from there to Europe and Asia.
Red peppers are actually ripened green peppers and because they do so gradually, you may see peppers that are both green and red at the same time. Red peppers sweeter in flavor than the green, which are more acidic and a little bitter. Red peppers can be used in the production of paprika.
“Permagreen” don’t turn red, but rather stay green even after they ripen.
Orange and Yellow peppers are their own varieties and have a gentle, sweet taste.
Bell peppers contain almost no protein at all and are almost entirely made of water, with a small percentage of carbohydrates. They are rich in vitamins C, B6, K, A, and E as well as some minerals and antioxidants. The different colored peppers contain different vitamins and nutrients, and they are all very low in fat.
Bell peppers generally have a long life, especially if kept in refrigeration.
A little about eggplants
The eggplant is native to India and Asia, where it can be found growing wild, and it is believed that eggplants were brought to Europe sometime during the 7th or 8th century.
Australians and Americans call the vegetable eggplant, while in England it is called an aubergine, from the French word for this vegetable.
Because of its meaty texture, eggplant is used instead of meat in some vegetarian versions of meat recipes.
While there are a variety of types of eggplants, the one for this recipe is the large, egg-shaped (or teardrop-shaped), blackish-purple one with the meaty inside.
Eggplants have health benefits, as they contain antioxidants like vitamins A and C, which help protect your cells against damage, and are low in calories.
About cooking eggplant
Eggplants can be roasted, baked, steamed, deep-fried, or sautéed.
Before cooking an eggplant, cut off the top part where the green is (called a calyx). The bottom tip should also be removed, but this is not imperative. The skin is perfectly fine to eat, but it must be cooked well. Otherwise it may come out chewy.
This recipe can use either peeled eggplants or eggplants with the skin (having the skin on will not ruin the recipe).
Eggplant is naturally a little bitter. If you find that to be the case, you can draw out the bitterness by sprinkling it with salt and letting it sit awhile. If you are using slices or pieces, slightly salt after cutting. I have personally never found this to be a problem when cooking with eggplants
Using salt before cooking can help prevent the eggplant from absorbing too much oil and becoming greasy if using oil with the eggplant recipe (I normally just pat the pieces with a paper towel if need be).
If you do use salt, MAKE SURE to rinse it off before cooking the eggplant, or the salt will become a part of your dish!
Personally, I have never salted my eggplants before using them (and I have used eggplants in two countries) and have never had any problem with bitterness, but if you have any concern, please do.
If a recipe calls for frying, but you prefer not to do so because of the calories the oil will add to the recipe, you can spray with cooking oil and bake instead.
Moroccan Jews in Israel
The majority of Moroccan Jews in Israel are the descendants of Jews that immigrated to Israel from Morocco.
Before the establishment of the State of Israel, the British put a quota on the amount of Jews that could immigrate to Israel, so most of the immigration was considered “illegal.” However, many Jews risked their lives to flee their countries of origin, including Arab and Muslim countries, such as Morocco.
Because the Muslims were against the establishment of the State of Israel, after the declaration of the state and the civil war that followed, life became more difficult for the Jews of Morocco, because the Muslims would attack Jews as a result. This brought about a wave of immigrants to Israel from Morocco, as did every Arab-Israeli war that followed.
So, during the 1950s and for decades afterward, waves of Moroccan Jews immigrated to Israel.
Morocco was once the home of the largest Jewish community in the Muslim world. However, by the time of the Yom Kippur war, the majority of Morocco’s Jews had immigrated to Israel, and they brought their delicious cuisine with them.
A little about Israeli cuisine
Some people complain about cultural appropriation in cuisine when food from one country is attributed to another country.
However, national cuisine in itself is often a mingling of food from a variety of cultures, often due to a change of ruling countries and a shifting of borders.
When people move from country to country, they will take their cultures with them, and their descendants may adapt their traditional cuisine with that of their new home, and if they don’t, others might.
When one lives in a melting pot, such as the US or Israel, it is just unrealistic to expect that food from a particular culture won’t mingle with that of other cultures.
That being said, “Israeli cuisine” is basically Middle Eastern (as opposed to Eastern European food) that was brought to Israel by Jews when they fled or were expelled from Muslim countries and moved to Israel mostly after the declaration of the State of Israel (collectively known as Mizrahi Jews).
Recipes were passed from generation to generation, and although decades have passed, the foods are still known by the culture they came from, and everyone seems to have their own way of making them.
That said, there are many variations of pretty much any “Israeli” recipe because of background, custom, or even just taste. When choosing a recipe, one has to know what actually constitutes a main ingredient—what makes the dish what it is—and what is left up to individual taste.
I personally find it very arrogant and quite irritating when a blogger (not naming names) will put “authentic” in the title of an “Israeli” recipe, as if all the rest of the variations are mere imitations. What’s worse is when that blogger makes the recipe with her own twist and then calls it authentic!
Adding more or less of a spice or adding a spice that is not in the recipe does not make it less authentic, but calling it “authentic” and then adding unnecessary extra ingredients above and beyond what needs to be there is misleading.
So, find the recipes you like with the ingredients you prefer, add your own twists, and בתאבון (pronounced: b’te’ah’vone, literally translated, “with appetite”)!
What is needed for this recipe?
I hardly ever meal plan, so I like to keep a cupboard full of seasonings, spices, veggies, and canned goods in my kitchen to use whenever the mood strikes.
But these are what you need to have on hand to make this recipe even last minute!
Don’t let the quantity scare you. If you’re anything like me, you already have most of these basics in your pantry anyway (and if you don’t, know that they are great to have on hand to make a variety of dishes at a moments notice)!
eggplant
red bell peppers
tomato (fresh or canned)
sweet paprika
white granulated sugar
granulated garlic
salt
onion powder
lemon juice
cumin
black pepper
hot paprika (or hot chili spice), optional for spiciness
oil for frying
Love side salads? Try these!
Easy Moroccan-Israeli Eggplant Salad
Delicious and savory eggplant salad with red bell peppers, tomatoes, and delicious spices.
Ingredients
- 2 medium eggplant cut into approximately 1" pieces/cubes
- 2 red bell peppers cut into approximately 1" pieces
- 18 ounces of diced tomato (fresh or canned)
- 2 tablespoons sweet paprika*
- 2 teaspoons white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon hot paprika (or hot chili spice), optional for spicy
- 1 cup water
- oil for frying
Instructions
- Pour oil into a frying pan to a height of approximately ⅛" and heat on medium.
- Add the pieces of eggplant and red pepper and saute until cooked (until you can slide a fork into the pieces).
- Add the tomato, sweet paprika, sugar, garlic, salt, onion powder, lemon juice, cumin, black pepper, hot paprika (if using it), and water.
- Cook, mixing occasionally, until the water has mostly evaporated and the mixture is thick.
- Let cool.
Notes
*regular paprika
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 177Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 565mgCarbohydrates: 42gFiber: 12gSugar: 18gProtein: 5g