There are several different ways to roast whole eggplant - this is needed for recipes like baba ganoush. For baba ghanouj you're trying to get a smokey, wood-fired flavor into the eggplant. This is best done on a grill. I experimented with some ways to get that smokiness on the stovetop (it was pretty successful but did set off the fire alarm). Eggplants can always be roasted in the oven as well but this will not provide as much smokiness.
Ingredients
1 whole eggplant
PAM spray
On the grill
will be updated summer 2022
Stovetop/oven
1. Slice off the top of the eggplant and then slice the eggplant in two the long way. Spray the skin side of the eggplant and place skin side down on a cast iron pan on high heat.
2. Cook on high heat until the skin is blackened, stiff, and cracking. (This will cause a lot of smoke!)
3. Spray the flesh side of the eggplant with PAM and flip over so it is laying flesh-side down in the cast iron pan.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes (or until a fork easily pierces through the flesh)
Oven only
1. Slice off the top of the eggplant and then slice the eggplant in two the long way. Spray the flesh side with PAM and place facedown on the baking sheet.
2. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes (or until a fork easily pierces through the flesh)
Effect of different roasting techniques
The burning / roasting on the stovetop makes the baba ganoush darker and smokier.
