AfricanPlated meal

Smoky Aubergine Feast

Whole roasted aubergine steaks over sunflower seed hummus, topped with a North African-style chickpea, walnut, preserved lemon and green olive sauce.

Eat nowHeartyContains sesame, tree nuts
Hands-on22 minTotal time45 minEnergy673 kcalProtein31g
Recipe details
Kitchen project

Equipment: Hob, Oven

Keep chilled after cooking

Smoky Aubergine Feast
Servings1 standard portionAdjust

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Standard portions

About 700 kcal per adult reference portion

Making 1 standard portion. Ingredients, instructions and Cooking Mode update together.

Doubling up barely adds effort and covers another mealtime.

Ingredients

Aubergine

Main

Sauce

Toppings

Now we make

Method

Do the night before

  1. 1
    Defrost 200g cooked chickpeas overnight in the fridge if using frozen

These steps sit outside the cooking-day clock.

22 min hands-on 45 min altogether
  1. 2
    Toast 6g walnuts in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant; let it cool before using
    πŸ– 3 min
  2. 3
    Measure 8g preserved lemon paste ready for the sauce. If using shop-bought traditional preserved lemon instead of the quick paste, remove the soft pith and finely chop the peel
    πŸ– 1 min
  3. 4
    Slice Β½ aubergine into steaks. Score the cut surface of aubergine in a crosshatch, brush with 3ml olive oil, season with 1 pinch smoked paprika
    πŸ– 5 min
  4. 5
    Roast aubergine at 220Β°C cut-side up for 25-30 minutes until deeply golden and completely tender
    πŸ– 3 minπŸ’€ 27 min unattended
  5. 6
    Roughly chop 17g pitted green olives. Cook Β½ clove garlic in 2ml olive oil 1 minute, add ΒΌ tsp cumin and 1 pinch chilli flakes, stir 30 seconds. Add chickpeas and 55g chopped tomato, simmer 8-10 minutes until thickened. Stir in preserved lemon, olives, 12ml lemon juice and walnuts, cooking 1-2 minutes more until glossy
    πŸ– 4 minπŸ’€ 7 min unattended
  6. 7
    Warm 80g Sunflower Seed Hummus gently with a splash of water if cold, until loose and spreadable
    πŸ– 3 min
  7. 8
    Spread Sunflower Seed Hummus across a plate, arrange aubergine on top, spoon over chickpea and walnut sauce, drizzle 3g tahini, scatter 5g coriander leaf
    πŸ– 3 min

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Nutrition details

Nutrition is shown for one standard portion, not the whole batch selected above.

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Nutrition summary

At a glance

Higher inFolatePhosphorusFibre
Lower inVitamin ACalciumCholine

Calories

673kcal

32%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 41%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 32%Aubergine Β· 6%
18% cal

Protein

31.1g

49%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 57%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 27%Aubergine Β· 7%
37% cal

Carbs

62.5g

Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 60%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 17%Aubergine Β· 15%
44% cal

Fat

33.2g

47%
Top contributors
Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 46%Chickpeas Β· 16%Olive Oil Β· 14%

Small numbers, big impact

Everyday essentials

Fibre28.95g
98%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 53%Aubergine Β· 24%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 16%
Vitamin B120.00ΞΌg
0%
Vitamin D0.00ΞΌg
0%
Iodine0.00ΞΌg
0%
Iron10.51mg
58%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 55%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 24%Olives Β· 5%
Zinc5.87mg
53%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 52%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 32%Aubergine Β· 6%
Calcium209.83mg
21%
Top contributors
Chickpeas Β· 47%Sunflower Seed Hummus Β· 22%Aubergine Β· 10%

Nutrients food alone won't reliably cover

These three are commonly under-consumed across all diets, not just plant-based ones - the difference is mainly B12, which has no whole plant food source at all.

  • Vitamin B12: is absent from whole plant foods entirely - the number above only reflects fortified ingredients (nutritional yeast, fortified soy milk). A reliable B12 supplement or fortified source is the standard recommendation for a fully plant-based diet, regardless of what any single day's total shows.
  • Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): most people fall short here regardless of diet - the typical omnivore diet doesn't include much oily fish either. This app only tracks ALA, the plant form (flax, walnuts, hemp, chia). The body converts some ALA to EPA and very little to DHA - the forms most directly used by the brain, eyes and heart - and that conversion is inefficient. An algae-oil supplement is the usual plant-based way to get EPA/DHA directly; it won't show up as an ingredient in any recipe here.
  • Vitamin D: deficiency is widespread across all diets, not just plant-based ones - it's mostly absent from whole plant foods here, and even the fortified soy milk and yogurt tracked don't cover the full target from food alone. Reasonable sun exposure or a D2/D3 supplement is the standard recommendation.

Not medical advice - if you're eating fully plant-based long-term, it's worth a conversation with a GP or dietitian, and a blood test is the reliable way to check where you actually stand.

See the full supplement guide (incl. creatine) β†’
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