Never steamed aubergine until now. It’s relatively healthy, and the sauce is versatile and great on tofu, too.
I came across this aubergine recipe in one of Ottolenghi’s cookbooks, Comfort. It’s actually a recipe from a co-author who has an Asian heritage background. I like the idea of cooking aubergine without oil, to make it easier on the tummy. But I also learnt that a little oil actually brings out the best character of an aubergine. That’s why so many famous aubergine recipes call for deep-frying.
Speaking of which, Vietnamese aubergine steak with black bean sauce would be my favourite way to cook an aubergine — using pastry brush to apply oil on thickly sliced aubergine to reduce oil intake, then pan-searing (or charring) to its silkiest. Easy and yum!
Now, let’s move on to some worth-noting cooking notes, which will make this steamed aubergine easier to cook.
Cooking Notes
In the Ottolenghi cookbook, several ingredients are used, but I made some changes to suit whatever I had on hand.
- Aubergine, peeled or unpeeled: The author likes it peeled for the silkiness, but I prefer unpeeled for better nutrients, so a little sacrifice on mouthfeel doesn’t harm.
- Vinegar: Chinkiang vinegar is too specific; never have it. Any wine vinegar will do fine (but no balsamic as the thickness is different).
- Cooking wine: Shaoxing wine? It’s the best suit, but please use any Chinese cooking wine you have. It’s for a subtle fragrance only.
- Soy sauce: I never buy Chinese light soy sauce, as it’s not the purest like the Japanese shoyu — only using water, soybean, wheat, and salt. Besides, light soy sauce is saltier than normal shoyu, so you know? Approx. 1 g sodium different. Check the ingredient labels.
Steamed Aubergine Recipe
Mix the sauce and chop some garlic, ginger, and scallions while you steam the aubergine. Combine two in the end, and voilà — a tasty dish to eat with rice.
Ingredients
Serves: 2-3
- 1 aubergine (around 350 g)
- salt
For the Sauce
- 2 cloves garlic
- 10 g ginger
- 2 scallions
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- fresh chillies or chilli powder
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
How to Make
- First, prepare the aubergine by cutting it into roughly 1 ½ cm chunks. Sweat it with a teaspoon of salt to draw out excessive moisture and bitterness (if any). Leave it for 20 minutes. Then rinse to remove the salt, pat dry and arrange it on a plate.
- Place the aubergine into a steamer and steam for about 25 mins. Test the doneness with a fork or chopstick. It should be easily pierce through without resistance.
- While the aubergine is steaming, prepare the sauce. Place the last 5 ingredients into a small bowl and whisk well, then set aside.
- Prep the fragrant vegetables by chopping the garlic, julienne the ginger and chop the scallion into rings.
- When the aubergine is about 10 mins to finish, heat 2 tablespoon of neutral oil in a pan, slowly cook the ginger, garlic and scallion over medium-low heat, until they are soft and smell really good.
- Stir in the sauce and let it bubbles gently. Add a little water if it’s too dry. The sauce should be thickened a bit. Then pour this sauce onto the steam aubergine. Sprinkle in toasted sesame seeds and chilli powder (or fresh chillies). Serve with hot steamed jasmine rice.
