Crispy Eggplant with Black Beans and XO Sauce

I'm really excited to share this fantastic eggplant recipe with you today! This was inspired by my sister's favourite eggplant dish from one of the Hongkong-style restaurants in Sydney, and is absolutely delicious. One bite into that golden shell of crisp tempura-style batter reveals a soft and silky eggplant filling that is so light it simply melts in your mouth. Then, you get these bits of savoury black beans and the spiciness of the XO sauce that melds together in your mouth with the creamy eggplant. These are so addictive (and deceptively filling on the tummy as well, as I discovered many eggplants later).

Claypot Eggplant with Pork and Pineapple Gravy

Eggplant (or brinjal/aubergine) is one of my favourite vegetables, often in the form of tempura, in curries, or with a sweet spicy soy, and sometimes braised with minced pork and salted fish. This time, I cooked it in a claypot with minced pork and pineapples, and some chilli oil. The eggplant is simmered in the sweet and savoury gravy for a few minutes until they are just tender. Any longer than that and it will turn to mush. The texture of the eggplant is soft and silky, tender yet firm enough to hold its shape, and the minced pork is packed with the tasty flavours from the gravy. Served with a big bowl of steamed jasmine rice, this dish is all you need for a satisfying meal.

Indian-style Vegetable Curry

This is a light vegetable curry cooked with mustard seeds, tamarind and a touch of coconut milk. It's something my mum usually makes when I go back home to visit. I found this curry to be the perfect accompaniment for Roti Jala which I prepared for dinner today. But it's just as delicious with steamed rice or Indian breads. Here is the recipe:

Indian-style Vegetable Curry

Ingredients

500g chicken thighs or backbone (bone and skin on)

1-2 stalks curry leaves

3 cups water

1 1/2 tbsp dried tamarind pulp, soaked in 1/2 cup hot water and juice strained
2/3 cup coconut milk
Vegetable oil, for frying

Vegetables (cut into approx 1 inch cubes):

1 cup carrots
1 cup cauliflower
1 cup long beans
1 1/2 cup eggplant
2 potatoes
2 tomatoes

Blend finely:
2 medium onions
2 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger

Spice mix:

1 tbsp ground coriander
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground fennel
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp mustard seeds
2-3 tbsp chilli powder (or ground chilli paste)

Seasoning:

2-3 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp chicken stock powder

Method

1. Heat up vegetable oil in a large pot and fry onions, garlic, ginger and the spice mix until fragrant (about 4-5 minutes).  Add chicken and sear all over in the onion mixture. Add curry leaves and water. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked. Add the tamarind juice and bring to a boil again before adding seasoning to taste.
2. Add carrots and potatoes, simmer for 8-10 minutes until almost cooked, then add the other vegetables. Bring to a boil and simmer until all vegetables are just cooked. Add coconut milk, bring to a brief gentle simmer, stirring occasionally (to avoid curdling). Check and adjust seasoning if necessary. Dish out into a bowl and serve with steamed rice, roti jala or your favourite Indian bread.

Japanese Curry Soba Noodles

I love eating Japanese curry with either rice or noodles. I used S&B Japanese curry mix to make a chicken curry, and boiled some dashi stock with soy and mirin for the noodle broth. The broth and curry are combined with the noodles to make a delicious curry soba meal! Even better with tempura, fortunately I had leftover eggplant fritters (click for recipe) from the previous day. So I baked them in the oven to crisp them up again and tossed them over the noodles. So yummy!

Japanese Curry Soba Noodles

(Serves 3-4)

Ingredients

Dashi broth (combine and bring to a boil):

1 sachet (5g each) instant dashi stock granules (dashi-no-moto)

2 1/2 cups water

2 1/2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp mirin

Salt to taste

Curry:

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3.5oz packet S&B Japanese curry mix

2 onions, 1 chopped and 1 cut into wedges

600g chicken thigh fillets, cut into cubes

1/2 red apple, finely diced or grated (optional)

2 cups water (add more later if necessary)

1-2 carrots

1-2 potatoes

1 small capsicum (optional)

1 tbsp honey

Soba (buckwheat) noodles (or substitute with udon)

Chopped spring onions

Method

Heat up oil in a large pan and fry onions and chicken. After chicken is browned, add diced apple and fry for a minute before adding water and carrots. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add honey, potatoes and capsicum and simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are cooked through. Break up the curry cubes and add to the pan. Stir until melted and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent the bottom from burning. Add more water if desired to adjust the consistency of the curry.

Cook the soba noodles in rolling boiling water for 3 minutes or until cooked (follow packet instructions). Transfer into a bowl and ladle some dashi broth over it. Then ladle an equal amount of curry into the bowl. Garnish with spring onions and serve immediately. Even more delicious with tempura! Any leftover curry is always a welcome treat with steamed rice!

Eggplant Fritters with Chilli and Sweet Soy

I used to order food from an Indonesian caterer back when I was studying in uni/college. I vividly recall this dish of soggy battered eggplants doused in a black soy sauce with chillies and onions. It didn't look very appealing at all, and heating it up in the microwave didn't do much justice to the already well-soaked eggplants. However, after eating it almost every week for dinner, I grew to like it and started looking forward to it each time, along with sayur assam and other home-cooked Indonesian dishes.

So I attempted to replicate this dish based on memory, and it's a pretty simple dish. The difficult part, perhaps, is in the deep-frying, or should I say, washing up after the deep-frying. But it is still one of my favourite eggplant dishes, and I absolutely love eggplant, as long as they are cooked properly, and not spongey.

Here is the recipe for the fritters and the sauce. If you plan on eating it straight away, then pour the sauce over the fritters. Otherwise, you can serve the sauce separately for dipping. The fritters are also delicious eaten on their own, or dipped in chilli sauce.

Eggplant Fritters with Chilli and Sweet Soy

Ingredients

1 large eggplant (about 500g), cut into 1cm slices
Salt

Batter:
1 cup self-raising flour
3 tbsp rice flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup water (approx)

Sauce:
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, sliced
2 red chillies, sliced
1/3 cup ABC kecap manis (Indonesian sweet soy)
1/3 cup water
Salt to taste

Method

Arrange the slices of eggplant on a large tray lined with absorbent kitchen paper. Sprinkle salt over the eggplant and cover with more kitchen paper or cloth that will absorb the moisture from the eggplants. Leave for 30 minutes and wipe off excess salt and moisture.

Combine dry ingredients for the batter in a bowl. Slowly add water and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the oil. The batter should not be too watery that it can't coat the eggplant properly.

Heat up sufficient oil for deep-frying in a large wok/pan. Dry off excess moisture from the eggplant. Coat the eggplant in batter and lower it into the hot oil. Fry on medium heat until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper.

To prepare the sauce, heat up 1-2 tbsp oil in a pan and fry garlic and onions until the onions soften, then add chillies. Pour in the soy and water, bring to a boil and simmer briefly until sauce is slightly reduced. Season with a pinch of salt. Serve with eggplant fritters and steamed white rice.

Deep fried eggplant in crispy batter

Going Greek with Moussaka

This is my first attempt at making Moussaka, which is like lasagna but uses lamb mince, potatoes and eggplant. I couldn't resist trying it out after seeing it on Masterchef, and it's really good! I'm salivating just thinking about it now. Click here for the recipe. You can substitute the keflagraviera cheese with parmesan instead.



Sayur Lodeh (Vegetable Curry)

String beans, carrots, cabbage, deep-fried tofu and glass noodles in a
lightly spiced coconut gravy with lemongrass, coriander and turmeric.

Sayur Lodeh (Vegetable Curry)

Ingredients

3 cups cabbage, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 cup brinjals/eggplant, halved lengthwise and sliced diagonally into 1 1/2 inch lengths
1 cup  long green beans, cut into 2 inch lengths
1 cup carrots, cut into 1/4 inch thick matchsticks
1 cup turnips, cut into 1/4 inch thick matchsticks
4-5 pieces deep-fried tofu, halved
1 small bundle of glass noodles, soaked in water until softened (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp ground chilli paste (or substitute with chilli powder)
2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, bruised/smashed
1 inch ginger, sliced
2 tbsp dried anchovies, washed and drained
4 cups water
2 cups coconut milk
1-2 tsp salt, to taste
1 tsp sugar, to taste
1 tbsp grated palm sugar (the yellow type)
1/2 tsp ikan bilis stock powder (optional)

Blend into a paste:
2 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tsp belacan (dried shrimp paste)
2 tbsp dried shrimp, washed and drained, and left to soften
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp ground coriander

Method

Heat up vegetable oil in a pot. Fry the ginger and blended ingredients for 2 minutes, then add chilli paste and fry until the oil separates. Add the dried anchovies and lemongrass and fry briefly. Then add water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add coconut milk and bring to a simmer again. Add salt and sugar to taste, and ikan bilis stock powder to enhance the flavour, if desired. Then add tofu and vegetables and cook on a gentle simmer until just tender (about 10-15 minutes) on low-medium heat. Add glass noodles last and cook for about 30 seconds. Dish out and serve immediately with steamed rice, as the glass noodles will tend to soak up the curry if left for too long.