Good Friday Lunch - Eggplant Salad (Ensaladang Talong)

For this year's Good Friday lunch (see other post on Green Mango, for a backgrounder) we have prepared the following menu for our friends and relatives here in Qatar in honor of our beloved grandmother and aunt who have been our gracious hosts through the years.

In our attempt to recreate that "Authentic Batangas Menu" we have in mind, we have prepared the following dishes.
Ensaladang Mangga (Green Mango Salad)
Ensaladang Talong (Eggplant Salad)
Sinaing na Tambakol (Yellow Fin Tuna in Sour Broth)
Ginataang Safi (Rabbit/Spine Foot fish in coconut cream sauce)
Inihaw na Tilapia & Gulyasan (Grilled Tilapia & Skipjack Tuna)
Batangas Bulanglang (Mixed Vegetables Soup)
Ginisang Munggo (Sauteed Mung Beans)
Matamis na Saging (Plantain Banana in Syrup)
Palitaw (Sticky Rice Cake with Grated Coconut)
I've made a little variation on the Eggplant Salad just for a change. Back home it would usually be grilled eggplant, onion and tomato and mixed with a dipping sauce made of soy sauce, lemon, garlic, and vinegar. In this case, I have prepared homemade vinaigrette made of olive oil, rice vinegar, minced garlic, finely chopped parsley, dried rosemary, salt, pepper and sugar. These I have just put in one bottle, sealed and shook to blend. I have added the vinaigrette only when the salad is about to be served.

Ingredients (Salad)
4 medium eggplant (couldn't find the long slim ones usually used in the Philippines so I've used aubergines), grilled
2 large red onion, diced
2 large tomato (not overripe), diced about 1cm size
1 large carrot, diced about 1cm size
2 medium cucumbers, diced about 1cm size
parsley, chopped for garnish
As salads go, this is also very easy to prepare, just grill the eggplants, cool in cold running water and peel.
Chop cooarsely to about an inch sice per piece.
In a big bowl, pour in the viniagrette first and then put in all the vegetables. Toss until the viniagrette is fully blended with the vegetable salad. Top with parsley garnish.
Best served with fried or grilled fish. Enjoy!