This Romanian eggplant salad (salata de vinete) is smoky grilled eggplant mixed with tomatoes, yellow pepper, red onion, lemon and parsley. Serve it as a dip, spread or side salad. It takes about 1 hour, most of it cooling, draining and resting.
I grew up with this dish. When I stayed at my grandmother's, she grilled the eggplants right on the cast iron cooktop (plită). If you've tried baba ganoush, this is its Romanian cousin.
🌱 Vegan
📷 Recipe Snapshot
🍽️ Recipe: Grilled Eggplant Salad (Salata de Vinete)
⏲️ Ready In: 1 hour
👥 Serves: 4 servings
🌏 Cuisine: Romanian
💪 Difficulty: Easy
📌 Recipe Type: Salad / Appetizer / Side
🌟 Ingredient Highlights: eggplant, yellow pepper, tomatoes, red onion, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil, sumac
❤️ Why You'll Love It: Smoky grilled eggplant mixed with fresh vegetables, herbs, lemon juice and olive oil. Serve it as a dip, spread, or side dish for a simple Romanian-inspired meal.
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More salads: try my help-yourself tuna rice salad or easy potato salad with radishes and olives. For dinner, try my roasted eggplant salad with Greek yogurt.
Salata de vinete is more of a smoky eggplant dip than a salad. We usually serve it as a spread with fresh tomatoes and feta. It's similar to Greek melitzanosalata and Turkish patlıcan salatası.
💗 Why This Recipe Works
- Grilling the eggplants over a flame gives the salad its smoky flavor.
- It uses a few fresh vegetables, with nothing else to cook.
- Serve it as a dip, a spread or a side, with my no-knead bread for scooping.
Liz says
I used this yummy salad as a dip, and my friends loved it. I grilled my eggplant, and we enjoyed the smoky undertones, too!
🥘 Ingredients
*See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
- Eggplants: Grill over direct flame until the skin is charred and the flesh is soft to get that signature smoky flavor. Let them cool slightly before peeling to make the process easier, then chop for smooth mixing.
- Parsley: Use fresh parsley and chop it finely to release its full aroma.
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice is key for a tangy taste. Start with a small amount and adjust to your preferred level of acidity.
- Olive oil: Use good-quality extra virgin olive oil, drizzle it evenly over the salad and toss gently.
- Sumac (optional): For an extra tangy note, sprinkle a little sumac over the salad just before serving. It pairs wonderfully with the smoky eggplant and fresh veggies.
👩🍳 How to Make Grilled Eggplant Salad
Step 1: Grill whole eggplants over an open flame or on a griddle pan, turning often. For the oven method, halve them, drizzle with olive oil and grill until soft and golden.
Step 2: You want them soft but not mushy. After grilling, toss them in a bowl, add a little salt, and cover with a towel to cool.
Step 3: Once cooled, peel the skin, trim the ends, and let them sit in a colander for 10-20 minutes to drain. Then chop on a cutting board.
Step 4: Mix the chopped eggplant with the vegetables and parsley. Add lemon juice, salt, pepper and olive oil, and toss gently.
A full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe card below.
Claudia's Top Tips
- Grill until the eggplants slump when pressed, about 15 minutes.
- Cover them right after grilling and let them steam for about 10 minutes so the skin loosens
- Drain the peeled eggplant in a colander so the salad isn't watery.
- A wooden chopper is the traditional tool. My grandmother kept one just for eggplants, so they wouldn't oxidize.
Common Mistakes
- Skipping the drain. The salad turns watery.
- Taking the eggplants off too early. They should slump and be soft all the way through, or you lose the smoky flavor.
- Adding all the lemon juice at once. Start small and taste.
🥗 Serving Suggestions
- Spread on Bread: Spread the salad over a slice of my easy homemade focaccia with rosemary and olive oil.
- Add Cheese: Top it with feta cheese or caș, a semi-soft fresh white cheese produced in Romania.
- Pair with Meat: Serve it alongside crunchy chicken schnitzel or roast lamb stuffed with rosemary and garlic for a hearty meal.
- Mezze platter: Serve it with olives, fresh vegetables, warm bread and my easy hummus platter. For a no-cook salad on the side, try my watermelon feta salad with cucumber and lime.
- Top a Grain Bowl: Use it to top a grain bowl with Turkish bulgur pilav, quinoa, Lebanese rice and broken vermicelli or couscous for a nutritious lunch option.
You might also want to try this homemade salata de vinete recipe with mayo next.
❓Grilled Eggplant Salad FAQs
Yes. Char whole eggplants on a gas flame, turning often. Or halve them, brush with oil and cook cut-side down under the oven grill at 400°F (200°C) for 15 minutes. In an air fryer, cook whole eggplants at 375°F (190°C) for 15-20 minutes, flipping halfway.
Cover the hot eggplants with a towel right after grilling for about 10 minutes. Then pinch the stem end and pull the skin away. If you grilled halves, scoop the flesh out with a spoon.
Up to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge. Stir before serving, since the juices can separate.
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📖 Recipe
Traditional Romanian Roasted Eggplant Dip (Salata de Vinete)
Video
Ingredients
- 4 eggplants grilled and chopped
- 1 yellow pepper diced
- 3 tomatoes diced
- 1 medium red onion diced
- 1 small bunch parsley chopped
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sumac optional
- ½ teaspoon salt and pepper
Instructions
- Start by placing each whole eggplant directly on the grill, stovetop over an open flame, cast iron griddle pan, or use the oven's grill setting. Turn them every so often to make sure they cook evenly. You'll want them to get soft, but keep an eye out so they don't get too mushy. Once they're grilled, move them to a bowl, sprinkle a bit of salt over them, and cover with a towel while they cool down, about 10 minutes .4 eggplants
- Once they've cooled, peel off the skin and cut off the ends. Let them sit in a colander for a bit to drain any extra liquid. When you're ready, chop them up on a cutting board.
- In a large bowl, mix the grilled eggplant with diced yellow pepper, tomatoes, red onion, and freshly chopped parsley. Drizzle lemon juice, a bit of salt and pepper, and olive oil over the veggies. Gently toss everything together until it's all nicely coated.1 yellow pepper, 3 tomatoes, 1 medium red onion, 1 small bunch parsley, 3 tbsp lemon juice, ½ tsp salt and pepper, 4 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp sumac
- Let the salad sit for about 15-20 minutes so the flavors can meld together. Serve with toasted or fresh bread for scooping.
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Notes
- Grilling Tip: The best charred flavor comes from grilling the eggplants directly over the flame, whether on a BBQ grill or a stove. It can get a bit messy, but to make cleanup easier, you can place aluminum foil on the stove.
- In the video shown with the recipe, I cut my eggplant in half, drizzled with olive oil, and baked it using the grill mode for about 20 minutes or until they're soft and golden brown.
- Post-Grilling Tip: After peeling the eggplants, place them in a strainer to drain excess water for a smoother texture.
- Storage: Keep the salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Serving Tip: Serve this salad as a spread on bread, a side dish, or with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh herbs.
Lois Zagha says
I just happen to be looking at recipes and came across this one for a favorite which I grew up with. I was surprised at the extra steps you take to grill the eggplant. My grandmother would "grill" her eggplants over a flame on the stove. I rinse the eggplant and dry, pierce it all over with a fork, then roast it in the oven at 415°-425° until a fork goes through the eggplant easily and the skin looks shrunken. Then remove from oven, and do the rest. However, I use very little oil, never olive oil because it has a tendency to solidify in the fridge, and a bit of vinegar. The lemon juice achieves the same tartness. I guess it the ingredients you add depends on your origins. My grandmother was from Romania. She added chopped green pepper, chopped onion, salt, and pepper, a bit of oil and a touch of white vinegar. My mother-in-law's family was from Russia. They favored tomato and onion in their eggplant salad. All delicious.
Claudia-Cristina Ciorteanu says
Thanks so much for sharing this, Lois! I love hearing how your grandmother made it, especially since she was from Romania too. I’m from Romania as well, and when I was on holiday at my grandmother’s, she would grill the eggplants directly on the cast iron cooktop (plită). It was so simple because the fire in the stove was always going.
I also remember we had a special wooden chopper just for chopping the eggplants, so they wouldn’t oxidise. It’s funny how the same dish can be a little different from one family to another. There are so many ways to make it, and each one brings back different memories!