Credit: Hetty Lui McKinnnon
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8 min read
Aubergine, eggplant… whatever you call it – fans of the nightshade vegetable will want to try these three recipes by Hetty Lui McKinnon.
Along with the likes of the humble cauliflower, celeriac and other once-unassuming vegetables that have been taken to new heights in recent years (hello, cauliflower wings and celeriac steaks), the aubergine has had a glow-up.
No longer left on supermarket shelves or turning up once in a blue moon in veggie-friendly curries and ratatouilles, aubergine has become the star of the show (for a while, it even had a starring role as everyone’s favourite emoji). Thanks in part to more of us striving to eat less meat and search for unprocessed alternatives, the vegetable now takes centre stage on our tables, and for good reason.
Spongy and absorbent, aubergines can take on a whole array of flavours – lending themselves particularly well to both Middle Eastern and Asian cuisines.
So if you’ve already nailed baba ghanoush and have miso aubergine on heavy rotation, we’re sharing three alternative recipes to help you liven up your repertoire.
Credit: Penguin Random House
And who better to help us than Australian cook, food writer and vegetable enthusiast Hetty Lui McKinnon and her latest release, Tenderheart? A love letter to vegetables, the book draws on McKinnon’s Chinese heritage and her lifelong love for the versatility of veg, featuring over 180 recipes that draw on over 22 fruits and vegetables.
From her vegan-friendly take on classic char sui to a summer-ready noodle dish and even a chocolatey dessert, here are three aubergine recipes to add to your weekly meal plan.
Eggplant, ‘Char Siu’ Style
Hetty says: “Char siu, the strips of barbecued roast pork with their signature crimson exterior, is a treasured Cantonese meat, and the most popular siu mei dish. Siu mei is a term that refers to the roasted meats popular in Hong Kong, but also commonly found in Chinatown windows around the world.
“Most city-dwelling Cantonese kids grew up eating siu mei — during my carnivorous youth, as my mother arrived home from the store, I would sidle up with my best good-daughter-face and charm a few slices of warm, juicy char siu and crispy pork crackling before dinnertime.
“In this recipe, eggplant is marinated, char siu style, in a fragrant, fruity barbecue sauce. Eggplant, a renowned carrier of flavor, greedily absorbs the sauce before it is roasted at high heat, emerging sweet and silky, imbued with lots of dark, caramelized notes.
“A note for gluten intolerant cooks: make sure your hoisin sauce is gluten-free or use a homemade version.
“This marinade is incredibly versatile and can be used to marinate and roast firm tofu and other vegetables in the exact same way. This is best eaten with rice, of course, but it’s also good stuffed into a crusty roll with cilantro, mint and salad greens, or used to make eggplant char siu bao (there’s a bao recipe in To Asia, With Love).”
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 2 large eggplants (about 1¾ lb/800g), sliced into discs ⅜ inch (1 cm) thick
- extra-virgin olive oil
- sea salt
- rice, to serve
- 2 green onions, finely sliced, for topping
- Toasted white sesame seeds, to serve
For the Char Siu Sauce:
- 2 small garlic cloves, grated
- ¼ cup (60ml) hoisin sauce
- 4 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari
- 4 teaspoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar or Shaoxing rice wine
- 1 teaspoon five-spice powder
Method
To make the char siu sauce, whisk together all the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the eggplant slices and marinate for 30–60 minutes or up to 4 hours in the fridge.
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
Lay the marinated eggplant slices on the prepared pan, drizzle with olive oil and roast for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and flip the eggplant over. Using a pastry brush, baste each slice with the marinade and drizzle with more olive oil, then return to the oven and roast for another 15 minutes. When cooked, brush the tops of the eggplant slices with more of the marinade and season well with sea salt.
Serve the eggplant with rice, topped with the green onion and sesame seeds.
Notes
Gluten-free and vegan
Substitutes: maple syrup for honey, brown sugar
Vegetable swap: eggplant for cauliflower, mushrooms, extra-firm tofu
Grilled Eggplant and Soba Noodle Salad with Nearly Nước Chấm
Hetty says: “This recipe is inspired by the lively, fragrant grilled eggplant dishes in Vietnamese cuisine. Here, spongy eggplants are grilled until silky and tender, and then tossed with nearly nước chấm, my piquant vegan take on this foundational Vietnamese sauce. If you are grilling, the eggplant could also be cooked on a griddle for a smoky edge.
“Load this soba noodle salad with as many herbs as you can handle, for heightened vibrancy and fresh textures. As with all soba noodle salads, I recommend cooking the noodles a day ahead (or at least a few hours prior), tossing in some sesame or neutral oil and storing them in the fridge overnight, as this helps the noodles develop a firmer structure to stand up to the robust dressing.”
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 7 ounces (200g) soba noodles
- 2 large eggplants (about 1 ¾ lb/800g)
- extra-virgin olive oil
- ½-inch (1.25cm) piece of ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- sea salt and black pepper
- ½ cup (120ml) Nearly Nước Chấm (see below)
- 1 cup Asian herb leaves, such as Thai basil, Vietnamese mint, cilantro, green onions, perilla leaves, finely sliced
- toasted sesame oil, for drizzling
- ½ cup roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
Method
Position a rack so the food will be about 2 inches (5 cm) from the heat source and preheat the broiler to high.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the soba noodles and cook according to the package directions, until al dente. Drain immediately and run under cold water until the noodles are completely cold. Set aside to drain.
Slice the eggplants into discs ½ inch (1.25 cm) thick, then lay them flat and slice them into batons. Place the eggplant on a sheet pan, drizzle with 2–3 tablespoons of olive oil and add the ginger and garlic. Season well with sea salt and broil for 5 minutes, watching the eggplant closely so it doesn’t burn. Flip the eggplant over and broil for another 4–5 minutes, again watching closely, until the eggplant is tender and golden. Remove from the broiler and transfer to a plate. While still warm, pour over the nearly nước chấm and toss to coat.
Combine the eggplant, noodles and herbs in a large bowl and season with sea salt and black pepper. Toss well. Drizzle with sesame oil and serve with the peanuts scattered over the top.
Notes
For gluten-free: use rice vermicelli or mung bean vermicelli
Vegan
Vegetable swap: eggplant for mushrooms
Nearly Nước Chấm
Makes about ½ cup
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (80ml) lime juice
- 2½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1 fresh Thai red chile, finely sliced
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
To make the nearly nước chấm sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.
Eggplant Chocolate Brownies
“Years later, after some research, I discovered that this unusual chocolate cake recipe was from a cookbook by Harry Eastwood called Red Velvet & Chocolate Heartache, which used vegetables to replace the fats in recipes. This brownie is inspired by that cake, but I’ve gone even further and made it gluten-free and vegan. The result is a lush, fudgy brownie, fiercely chocolatey and irresistibly nutty from the almonds.”
Makes sixteen 2-inch (5cm) squares
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant (about 14oz/400g)
- 1¼ cups (250g) dark chocolate chips (vegan or regular)
- ¾ cup (150g) brown sugar
- 1 cup (110g) almond flour
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (50g) cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup (50g) sliced almonds
Method
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease an 8-inch (20 cm) square baking pan (or a smaller pan if you want thicker brownies) with cooking spray and line with parchment paper. Line a sheet pan with foil.
Prick the eggplant all over with a fork, then slice in half lengthwise through the stem. Place the eggplant, cut-side down, on the lined pan, then transfer to the oven and roast for 30–40 minutes, until the eggplant feels very soft to the touch. Remove from the oven and allow the eggplant to cool for a few minutes until you can handle it comfortably. Using a large spoon, scoop out the soft flesh and discard the skin. There are faster ways to cook your eggplant—you could peel, cube and steam it for 8–10 minutes, or microwave on high for 8 minutes.
Place the hot eggplant in a bowl and add 1 cup of the chocolate chips. Stir until the chocolate is melted. Add the brown sugar and stir vigorously until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is glossy.
Place the almond flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and sea salt in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate-eggplant mixture and fold well, until everything is combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Top with the almonds and remaining ¼ cup of chocolate chips.
Transfer to the oven and bake for 30–35 minutes, until the sides of the brownie look puffed and the surface feels firm to the touch. Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool completely, then cut into 16 squares. These brownies are soft and fudgy—place them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight for a firmer texture.
Storage: These brownies keep well in the fridge for about 4 days.
Notes
Gluten-free and vegan
Substitutes:
- almond flour for other nut flour, almond meal, gluten-free all-purpose flour, all-purpose flour
- flaked almonds: walnuts, hazelnuts
Vegetable swap: eggplant for sweet potato
Tenderheart: A Cookbook About Vegetables and Unbreakable Family Bonds © 2023 by Hetty Lui McKinnon (£30, Random House) is out now
Photography: Hetty Lui McKinnnon
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