Recipe40′
Melitzanosalata (Aubergine Salad) Spread
A recipe straight out of the old Kozani restaurants
The eggplant salad, along with the book that inspired it.
19 September 2026
A recipe straight out of the old Kozani restaurants
The eggplant salad, along with the book that inspired it.
There’s a good chance I never got to experience the old restaurants in Kozani mentioned on page 153 of the second volume of the book “Flavors of Old Kozani” by Tsikritzi Momtsiou and Ftaka Tsikritzi. This book is no longer in print, and it came into my possession when I inherited it. Leafing through it, I found many of the recipes that are still on restaurant menus, as well as a reason to cook more dishes from the place where I was born. This recipe for aubergine salad has been tweaked just a little, only to make it a bit easier to prepare and to ensure you don’t use up all the olive oil you have at home on a single salad.
Kozani is one of the coldest cities you’ll find in northern Greece and has its own culinary tradition.
When I first read the recipe, I noticed an unfamiliar word: what is “lemon tuzu”? It comes directly from Turkish, as limon tuzu means “lemon salt” and refers to citric acid, which is used, among other things, to add tartness to a recipe. I hope that the next time I share a recipe from this book, I’ll have found one of the two authors. Until then, enjoy this aubergine salad as an appetizer at your table or alongside grilled meats. And even better, you can make this recipe during your BBQ and grill the aubergines for extra flavor.
TipPrep and cook time were measured at the original serving size — treat them as a starting point once you scale servings up or down.
Vegetables · Appetizer · Baked
TipCheck off what you already have before you go shopping.
TipCheck off each step as you go and follow the recipe without losing your place.
Wash the aubergines and roast them in a preheated oven with the convection setting for 20 minutes.
Once they've softened well and while still warm, carefully remove their skins.
To whiten them, place them in a basin with plenty of water for 10 minutes, in which we've dissolved the flour and citric acid.
Remove them from the water and place them in a bowl, pressing them well by hand until most of the water is gone.
In a mortar, pound the garlic with the olive oil until it becomes a paste.
Add the garlic-olive oil mixture, the salt and the vinegar to the bowl with the aubergines and blend with a hand blender until the mixture is smooth.
Serving suggestion:Plate with finely chopped parsley, serve with a few drops of olive oil and a glass of Makryonitis tsipouro with a little ice.
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