Smoke Week: Smoked Eggplant with a Sweet Lemon Vinaigrette

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C – When I get addicted to something, I get really addicted!

I got addicted to making pickles. Now, we have 20 jars in the refrigerator waiting to be eaten. I got addicted to making ice cream. There are always a few quarts of that in the freezer. Pizza was another. I had to hold off because of the carbs.

My new addiction. Smoking stuff. It’s easier than I thought it would be. For example, we never buy bacon anymore unless it’s a really big emergency and we are completely out. Today, it’s smoked eggplant. Since we were smoking yesterday’s pork tenderloin anyway, why not smoke some eggplant along with it. There was room and it might turn out pretty good. It wasn’t just pretty good. It was fabulous.

The only time you shouldn’t smoke two things at once is if you are smoking fish. It’s really fishy. It could ruin the taste of other things you smoke at the same time.

These eggplants were delicious with a nice vinaigrette. It made a great side dish for steak or eaten by itself. You can also make a puree for steak. But, I loved it smoked and eaten with a dressing. It’s simple and delicious.

Smoke Week: Smoked Eggplant with a Sweet Lemon Vinaigrette
Recipe type: Sides
Author:
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour 10 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Vinaigrette
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1 shallot, mince
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 Tbsp parsley, minced
Eggplant
  • 1 large eggplant, top cut off and split lengthwise
  • Salt to cover the eggplant inside.
  • Enough canola oil to coat the eggplant
Instructions
Vinaigrette
  1. Place shallots, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, sugar, salt and pepper in a bowl.
  2. Slowly whisk in oil until emulsified.
  3. Add parsley and taste. Adjust seasonings if needed.
  4. Set aside
Eggplant
  1. Cover the cut eggplant with oil and salt. Place in the smoker and smoke for 1 hour until tender.
  2. Once eggplants are done. Let rest for a few minutes.
  3. Slice into ½-inch slices and top with vinaigrette.
  4. Serve.
  5. Enjoy!

 

The smokey eggplant has a wonderful texture. The smoking dries out the eggplant, instead of making it mushy. It has a steak-like quality.

My new addiction: Tea-smoked eggplant with a sweet lemony vinaigrette. You should try it.

Related posts:

Artichoke Week: The 5-Minute Artichoke
The Friday Special: Salt-Cured Egg Yolks
Winter Vegetable Week 2016: Vegetables Sous Vide

3 thoughts on “Smoke Week: Smoked Eggplant with a Sweet Lemon Vinaigrette”

  1. It appears that you do not remove the skin before you smoke the eggplant. Is the skin very edible when smoked? What about if it was removed?

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