Barbecued aubergine and figs with pickled apricot salsa

Portion size: Serves 4
Hands-on time 40 min
Difficulty: easy

Dairy-free

Vegetarian

Recipe by: Helen Graves

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You need to know about this smoky barbecued aubergine and fig dish from Helen Graves which with a pickled apricot and harissa salsa. It’s the dream dish for a vegetarian barbecue.

Cook and editor with a special interest in live fire cooking, Helen is the author of the bestselling book Live Fire, editor of Pit magazine and head of content at Great British Chefs.

Helen says: “the slight bitterness of smoky, charred aubergines meets squidgy, sweet figs, while creamy tahini plays off the brightness and spice of a lightly pickled apricot and harissa salsa. It’s a showstopper whether you serve it in the centre of the table or individually, and would also work well wrapped up in flatbreads.”

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Ingredients

2 aubergines
Vegetable oil to brush
6-8 figs
15g pumpkin seeds, lightly toasted

For the yogurt

2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp tahini
250g natural yogurt

For the salsa

50ml lemon juice
1 tbsp maple syrup or honey
100g dried apricots, finely chopped
1 tbsp harissa
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
Handful mint leaves, chopped
Handful coriander leaves, chopped
5 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

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Method

For the salsa, pour the lemon juice, maple syrup or honey and 50ml water into a small bowl, mix well, then add the apricots. In another bowl, stir together the garlic and lemon juice for the tahini yogurt. Set both aside to infuse while you light the barbecue and wait for it to come up to temperature.
Slice the aubergines lengthways into 1cm thick slices, brush them generously with oil and season with salt. Put them on the grill directly over the hot coals and cook until charred and completely soft (it’s important to make sure the aubergines are really soft and cooked through, otherwise they will be unpleasant to eat). This will take around 5 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of your slices and heat of the grill.
Halve the figs (or quarter them if particularly large) and brush the cut sides with oil. Grill over direct heat (directly over the coals) for around 5 minutes, turning once, or until soft and charred.
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Drain the apricots, then combine them with the remaining salsa ingredients, seasoning with salt and pepper.
Stir the tahini and yogurt into the lemon juice and garlic, then season with salt and pepper. Mix well until smooth.
Spread the tahini yoghurt over the base of a serving platter or individual plates, then top with the aubergines and figs. Drizzle over the apricot and harissa salsa and scatter over the pumpkin seeds.