Name: Baba Ganoush II
Ingredients: 1 1/2 lbs Eggplant; 3 tbsp Lemon juice; 1 tsp Salt; 2 tsp Minced fresh garlic; 3 tbsp Sesame tahini; -- (optional: substitute; -- yogurt or sour cream); 1/4 cup Chopped parsley; 1/2 cup Toasted pine nuts; 2 tbsp Olive oil

Why it works: Lemon and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Lemon + parsleytop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together14,037 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Eggplant + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together801 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Eggplant + sesametop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together43 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Eggplant + pinetop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together42 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Eggplant + parsleytop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together328 recipes

Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggplant: Forms the bulk of the dip and, once cooked and blended, gives it a creamy body.
Sesame tahini: Adds nutty richness and thickness, helping the dip hold a smooth, spreadable texture.
Lemon juice: Adds acidity that brightens the flavour and balances the richness of the eggplant and tahini.
Minced fresh garlic: Contributes sharp, pungent aroma that mellows as the dip sits.
Olive oil: Adds fat and smooth mouthfeel, and a fruity finish on the surface.
Toasted pine nuts: Add crunch and a toasted, buttery flavour that contrasts with the smooth dip.

The step that matters

Bake the eggplant until fully tender. Heat softens the cell walls and collapses the flesh, so it scoops out easily and blends smooth. Underbaked eggplant stays fibrous and can taste bitter and watery.

Swap the tahini

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (eggplant, lemon, garlic, sesame, yogurt, parsley, pine):

Chickpeafits better
Cashew nutfits better
Lentilsfits better
Tahinithe original

Fit is the average pairing score against eggplant, lemon, garlic, sesame, yogurt, parsley, pine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Pine	1 oz (28g)	191
Sesame	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Tahini	1 tbsp (15g)	89
Eggplant	1 cup cubed (82g)	35
Walnut	1 walnut half (4g)	26
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Baba Ganoush II

Baba Ganoush II

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare and bake

Make the dip

Finish and serve

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)