Macedonia · Sauces and Dips · Vegetarian
Classic Ajvar
Ajvar is a sauce popular in the Balkans. It is a paste of roasted red peppers and eggplant, usually mixed with garlic, tomato paste and spices.
45 min 360 kcal 4 serves Medium🌿Vegetarian🇲🇰Macedonia★★★★★4.7· 6 reviews
Ingredients
ServingsMetric
- 10 red bell peppers
- 2 eggplants
- 3 garlic cloves
- 100 mlolive oil
- 1 tbsptomato paste
- to tastesalt and ground black pepper
- ½ tspsugar
- 1 tbspvinegar
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C. Wash and prick the eggplants with a fork.
- Bake the peppers and eggplants for 30-40 minutes, turning until softened.
- Place the vegetables in a bag for 10-15 minutes, then peel off the skin and remove the seeds.
- Chop vegetables, add garlic, oil, tomato paste, salt, pepper, sugar and vinegar.
- Cook over low heat for 30-40 minutes, stirring.
FAQ
Ajvar is uniquely Balkan: roasted red peppers (sometimes with eggplant) ground into a paste and simmered until thick. Lecho is a Hungarian pepper and tomato ragout — more liquid with chunky pieces. Harissa is a North African hot chili paste with coriander — a completely different flavor profile. Ajvar is mild, sweet, and smoky from roasting — eaten by the spoonful as a spread, not as a sauce.
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Comments (1)
Taste this classic ajvar at room temperature, not straight from the fridge. Cold mutes flavors — you might oversalt it. Let it warm up for 10-15 minutes, taste, then make your final seasoning adjustments.