Steamed Japanese Eggplant

Japanese eggplant is one of my favorite ingredients for creating a savory and heathy vegetarian meal. This recipe incorporates sautéed red onion and sliced garlic with the steamed eggplant to bring a variety of textures and flavors to this simple dish. And, although I am still in France, I love to use Asian ingredients if I can get my hands on them.

Serve alone, atop a bed of greens, or with a scoop of jasmine rice. Top with slivers of basil, sesame seeds, for the addition of a slight crunch and a nutty sesame finish, and a squeeze of lime and pinch of lime zest.

This is fast, easy, and the essence of umami flavor. This recipe serves 2 alone or 4 if served with rice and sides.

Gather these ingredients and get to work.

2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium sized red onion, cut in half lengthwise (from end to bristly end) and thinly sliced

• 2-3 cloves of garlic, thinly slices

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 pound Japanese eggplants, cut on the diagonal into 2 inch pieces

• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or less if you don’t like spice)

• 1 tablespoon chopped green onions

• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seed

• 2 tablespoons torn basil leaves

• juice and zest of 1/2 a lime

Options for serving:

• 2-4 cups baby arugula, washed and dried, for serving

• Steamed white rice

Now here’s what to do next:

Place a wok or large thick bottomed sauté pan with a lid over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, after it begins to heat add the red onion and a pinch of salt. Sauté until wilted and beginning to brown, about 4 minutes.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the sliced garlic and sauté till fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the eggplant and the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Increase the heat to high and sauté while stirring for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and cover the pan to steam the ingredient for 6 minutes or until the eggplant is very tender (not spongy at all) but not falling apart, removing the lid every few minutes to stir the contents.

Remove the lid, add the red pepper flakes, and increase the heat to slightly brown the eggplant while carefully stirring, 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, lime juice, and lime zest and gently stir to coat the ingredients.

Quickly remove the wok from the heat. Plate a handful of fresh arugula (about a cup) next to a scoop of rice (if you are serving rice) in a shallow bowl. Place a large scoop of eggplant on the arugula adjacent to the rice. Top the eggplant with sesame seeds, slices of green onion, and a few drops of light soy sauce. Serve immediately.

Fast, easy, delicious. Pure comfort food that is full of pure umami flavors and a whole world of textures. Hurry up and make this one! Bon appetite baby.