Easy Vegan Recipe: Purple Eggplant Vegetarian Salad
Purple Eggplant Vegetarian Salad is a simple, tasty way to add color and vitamins to the dinner table. This recipe makes use of purple eggplant, which can be hard to find but makes for a striking dish.
Not only does this salad look beautiful on your plate, but it’s also delicious! The purple eggplant gives it an almost sweet flavor that balances out the tanginess of feta cheese and lemon juice.
What is Purple Eggplant Vegetarian Salad
Purple Eggplant Vegetarian Salad is a Greek recipe that can be served hot or cold. It is vegetarian, healthy, delicious and colorful.
Ingredients
- Eggplant
- Red onion
- Red pepper
- Tomato – use a small one if you can find it, the bigger ones will be too big for this salad.
- Feta cheese – crumbled or cubed, whichever you prefer. I prefer cubed because it’s easier to eat. You can also use goat’s milk feta if you have any on hand (and if not, get some).
- Olives – sliced black olives are best but I like using Kalamata olives as well; they’re larger so they hold their shape better when mixed into the salad. Just make sure there aren’t any pits in them—those will ruin your day! Also remember that these are preserved foods so follow these steps: wash then slice away from their skin (don’t forget about those pesky pits), rinse again under cold running water until no more salt appears on surface of slices/pieces; pat dry with paper towels before adding them back into your bowl/container/etc.; toss ingredients together gently so that nothing sticks together while waiting for guests’ arrival time window before serving up some deliciousness upon request 🙂
- Parsley – fresh parsley adds just enough flavor without overpowering other ingredients’ flavors too much which makes it perfect here since we’re trying to keep things simple yet flavorful at same time–like myself ;). Also adds nice contrast against darker green leaves when added atop finished dish after cooking process has ended successfully 🙂 . Remember though not all brands may taste as good as others so choose wisely!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the eggplant cubes on the baking sheet in one layer, leaving space between them so they don’t overlap.
- Roast for 20 minutes until tender, then remove from oven and let cool slightly before transferring to a bowl (you could also leave them on the tray)
- Add remaining ingredients!
Cooking Notes
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and use a sharp knife to cut it into cubes.
- Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and use a sharp knife to slice it into cubes.
- Cut the tomato in half lengthwise, then cut each half into quarters and remove most of the seeds before slicing each quarter into cubes that are roughly equal in size to those of your eggplant pieces (the tomato will give you more juice).
- Cut red onion into thin slices using your sharpest knife.
Add-ins and Variations
This salad is a great way to use up leftover grilled eggplant or roast it fresh. The roasted garlic gives the dressing its creamy texture and mild sweetness, which pairs well with the bitterness of the arugula. If you don’t have any leftover grilled eggplant, you can also roast the whole purple eggplant instead of slicing it into rounds.
The salad ingredients are very flexible! Here are some suggestions for what could be added:
- Roasted red peppers
- Roasted red onions
- Roasted garlic (if using raw garlic, simply add it as part of your salad ingredients)
- Fresh oregano leaves (or another herb)
- Fresh basil leaves (or another herb)
- Fresh mint leaves (or another herb)
- Fresh thyme sprigs – Add just before serving so they stay crisp and flavorful
- Fresh rosemary sprigs – Add just before serving so they stay crisp and flavorful
Purple Eggplant Vegetarian Salad is best to serve with
Serve the salad with pita bread, crackers or toasted pitas. If you do not need to watch your carbs and fat, serve this eggplant salad with some olive oil and vinegar for a flavor explosion. Also add in some lemon juice for that extra tangy taste! If you want more crunch in your salad then add cucumbers, tomatoes and green onions. You can also garnish it up with parsley and mint leaves (or any other herb of choice), feta cheese crumbled on top of the veggies or crispy shallots sprinkled on top as well.
The best thing about this recipe is that it’s a great way to get more vegetables into your diet without compromising taste. The roasted eggplant adds a wonderful depth of flavor, but if you don’t have time for that step feel free to use regular cooked cubed eggplant instead. Just make sure it has been drained well before adding it into the salad bowl with all other ingredients! We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do.
