Chargrilled eggplant & burnt butter yoghurt

This dish, served as a side at Anason in Barangaroo, is designed to share.

Chargrilled eggplant & burnt butter yoghurt. Picture: Charlotte Curd.

Yoghurt, drained and thickened overnight and whisked with nut-brown butter, is a perfect match for smoky eggplant. This dish, served as a side at Anason in Barangaroo, is designed to share.

CHARGRILLED EGGPLANT & BURNT BUTTER YOGHURT

1 medium eggplant

2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds

Micro herbs, to garnish

Marinade

100ml olive oil

100g eschallots, peeled and finely sliced

1 clove purple garlic, peeled and grated

1 teaspoon dried mint

1 teaspoon table salt

Burnt butter yoghurt

100g labne (made from strained yoghurt), at room temperature

Pinch table salt

30g butter

Puffed wild rice

100ml vegetable oil

20g wild black rice

For the marinade, heat olive oil in a saucepan over low heat; add eschallots and cook until dark golden. Remove from heat and transfer to a shallow bowl. Allow to cool; stir in garlic, mint and salt.

For the burnt butter yoghurt, place labne and salt in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook for 2-3 minutes or until it begins to foam and become nutty brown. Whisk into labne.

For the puffed wild rice, place oil in a small saucepan over high heat. When the oil starts to smoke, gently sprinkle in wild black rice and fry for about 15 seconds until puffed; remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Heat a barbecue chargrill until hot (or use the open flame of your gas stove); cook eggplant, using tongs to turn on all sides until skin has blackened and blistered and flesh is tender. Remove from heat then peel off the skin, leaving stalk intact. Gently place eggplant in bowl with the marinade, turn to coat, and leave for 30 minutes.

To serve, remove eggplant from marinade and place on a serving plate; spoon over burnt butter yoghurt. Garnish with puffed black rice, pomegrenate seeds and micro herbs. Serves 2 as a starter

Somer Sivrioglu is a Turkish-Australian chef and owner of Sydney restaurants Efendy (Balmain) and Anason (Barangaroo)