A simple appetizer that will thrill vegans as well as meat-eaters! Smokey, slightly chunky, and loaded with flavor, this traditional eggplant Baba Ganoush recipe is kicked up with a touch of cumin and paprika, plenty of garlic, and fresh Meyer lemon juice.

I’m here to take you to funky town.
What are your thoughts on a simple Middle Eastern dip so heavenly, they make tears involuntarily fall from your eyes?
Obviously hummus comes to mind, as it should. It’s delicious and incredible and you can find 32 varieties at any grocery store. Homemade hummus has been on my to-do list for aaaaages, but here we are, ogling at it’s aubergine-based brother instead.
Blame my bad habits of shopping for produce with intention, and then failing the follow-through.
Easy Baba Ganoush Recipe
Yep, the chickpeas got passed over in favor of a few farmers market eggplants on the verge of being fertilizer.
But since I’m now the proud owner of a rather large jar of tahini, you can bet that you’ll see a recipe for hummus on here sooner or later.
Likely sooner, since now that I’ve tried baba ganoush I want to dip all the things.
But seriously. After the platter of veggies and pita that I used for this shoot was gone, I started rummaging through my fridge to see what else I could douse in the garlicky, lemony goodness that is this baba ganoush.
Ingredients
- large whole eggplants
- extra virgin olive oil
- fresh garlic cloves
- fresh lemon juice
- roasted tahini
- ground black pepper
- kosher salt
- cumin
- paprika
- sesame seeds for garnish
- fresh basil or parsley for garnish
As you can see these are all pretty simple ingredients. You can find all of these at your local grocery store, even the tahini. You’ll find that on the ethic aisle.
Substitutions
If you don’t have olive oil, you can substitute avocado oil. You can also use pre-minced garlic if you don’t have fresh garlic.
How to make Traditional Baba Ganoush
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and brush the cut sides lightly with 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet, cut side down, and roast 35-40 minutes, until very tender. Allow to cool for 15 minutes.
- Scoop the soft roasted eggplant flesh into a strainer set in a large bowl, pressing out excess liquid. Discard liquid and transfer eggplant to a bowl, then mash well with a fork.
- Add the remaining ingredients (garlic, lemon juice, tahini, and remaining olive oil, pepper, salt, and cumin). Mash well, aiming for a somewhat smooth texture, but still retaining some chunks of eggplant.
- Chill the baba ghanoush for 1 hour, then season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and/or cumin. When ready to serve, swirl a little olive oil on the top, and sprinkle with sesame seeds and fresh basil or parsley.
- Serve with pita chips, carrot sticks, celery, bell peppers, or cucumber slices. Enjoy!
Recipe notes for this creamy dip
This is the best baba ganoush recipe that I’ve ever made and I don’t think you’ll need any substitutions but if you do here are some suggestions.
If you want to make this recipe quicker, you can use a food processor instead of doing everything by hand.
Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
I may have actually gone a little too far with the garlic, and you can totally blame The Hubs for that. His mantra is “there’s never too much garlic or salt.”
This is coming from a guy who ate so many hot garlic wings one night, we had to open the windows on the ride home because the smell was coming out of his pores. It was repulsive, even to him. He was a walking vampire repellent. Two showers later and finally he smelled like a human again.
So, tread with care as far as that goes. And don’t go crazy with the cumin, either – unless you like your baba to taste like Taco Bell ground beef.
Recipe FAQ
What is similar to Baba Ganoush?
Is baba ganoush just hummus?
Is baba ganoush healthier than hummus?
This recipe is perfect for 2 or 4 folks with respectable appetizer appetites, but is easily doubled, tripled, or quadrupled if you happen to have a larger crowd to feed.
Or if you’re just an aubergine glutton, which I couldn’t blame you for. Dip on, friends!
I put my hand upon your hip, when I dip, you dip, we dip
You put your hand upon my hip, when you dip, I dip, we dip… (< YAY 80s music!)
LOOKING FOR MORE DELICIOUS DIP RECIPES?
If you love this recipe, please consider leaving a 5 STAR RATING! If you really love it, leave us a comment and let us know – we appreciate all forms of feedback!
LET’S CONNECT!
Join in on the fun in our Facebook group! Feel free to share YOUR favorite recipes, ask questions, help out your fellow home cooks, and see what’s new with The Crumby Kitchen (so that you never miss a new recipe)! If you’d like to check it out, you can request to join HERE.
Also, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and tag #crumbykitchen so we can see all the wonderful recipes YOU recreate from this site!
You can also enjoy exclusive content before anyone else by subscribing to our weekly newsletter – and you’ll never miss a delicious recipe again!
Baba Ganoush
Ingredients
- 3 large eggplant
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil plus more for seving
- 2-3 medium cloves garlic smashed
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3 Tablespoons roasted tahini
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Kosher salt
- Pinch cumin
- Paprika for garnish
- Sesame seeds for garnish
- Basil or parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and brush the cut sides lightly with 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet, cut side down, and roast 35-40 minutes, until very tender. Allow to cool for 15 minutes.
- Scoop the soft eggplant flesh into a strainer set in a large bowl, pressing out excess liquid. Discard liquid and transfer eggplant to a bowl, then mash well with a fork.
- Add the garlic, lemon juice, tahini, and remaining olive oil, pepper, salt, and cumin. Mash well, aiming for a somewhat smooth texture, but still retaining some chunks of eggplant.
- Chill the baba ghanoush for 1 hour, then season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and/or cumin. When ready to serve, swirl a little olive oil on the top, and sprinkle with sesame seeds and fresh basil or parsley.
- Serve with pita bread or chips, carrot sticks, celery, or cucumber slices. Enjoy!
Nichole says
I have always wanted to make Baba Ganoush! We make a ton of homemade hummus here (because yes, we also have a crazy large jar of tahini to use) – also, “Blame my bad habits of shopping for produce with intention, and then failing the follow-through.” – also ME.
Liz says
Ha ha. I eat a lot of homemade hummus and I have the fear of wreaking of garlic! Your baba ganoush is beautiful!
Deanna says
I love baba ganosh!! YUM!!!!!!!!!!!
cheri says
Hi Erica, Baba Ganoush has been on my too-do list foreveer. I could live off this stuff. I bet this is delcious!
Wendy says
I will choose baba ganoush over hummus any day, hands down. You know what I would have dipped into it when I ran out of veggies? A spoon!
Cindy says
I love the touch of Meyer Lemons, so fresh tasting!
Barrie says
Oh, I am definitely trying this- I love BabaGanoush, but my recipe is so old- I definitely could change it up a bit~
Marion Myers says
Abel and I have the same mantra! โthereโs never too much garlic or saltโ for sure. I tell everyone that comes for dinner at my house, ‘I hope you like garlic’ haha So anytime you are down south my way, you come and get your garlic on for dinner ๐ I haven’t had baba ganoush in soooooo long! This brings back good memories of dining out at a local place with friends. I’m so glad you shared this, and I can’t wait to give it a try. Full on garlicky goodness!! Thanks, Erica!