I’m going out on a limb guys – I reckon this is THE best eggplant dish I know. It’s just so silky, tender and rich, with a perfect hit of chilli to tie it all together. If you’re looking to master a meat-free dish or a vegetable side, then look no further.
3 small (about 200g/7 oz each) eggplant, trimmed and cut into wedges
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp miso paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp white vinegar
½ cup beef or vegetable stock
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
3 garlic cloves, finely grated
½ tsp cornflour (cornstarch) mixed with 1 tbsp water
finely chopped spring onion (scallions) to serve
chilli oil to serve (try my homemade version here)
sea salt
Liberally salt the eggplant wedges and leave them to drain in a colander for about 30 minutes.
In the meantime, in a bowl, mix together the miso paste, soy sauce, vinegar, beef stock, sugar, ginger and garlic.
Drain the eggplant on paper towel and squeeze with extra paper towel to dry off the eggplant as much as possible.
Heat the vegetable oil in a medium heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Add a half of the eggplant and sear for 2-3 minutes on each side. Then pile them up in one side of the pan and add the other half of the eggplant and sear those. Then mix all the eggplant pieces together. Pour over the sauce. Cover with a lid, turn the heat down to medium and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir through the cornflour mixture. Simmer for another minute to allow the sauce to thicken. Transfer to a serving plate. Drizzle with chilli oil and sprinkle with the spring onion.
