This is another recipe that I tried from Maangchi and I loved it! Eggplant (or brinjal) is one of my favorite vegetables. There is one eggplant dish that I love at Chinese restaurants. I don't know what it is called. It is fried with minced pork.
So anyway, this dish does not involve any frying. The eggplant is steamed till soft and tossed in a mixture of garlic, spring onions, soya sauce, fish sauce, hot pepper flakes, sesame oil and sesame seeds.
I loved this dish so much that I made it twice in a row. The first time, I followed the recipe exactly and found that the seasoning was too mild for me. It was not salty enough for the amount of eggplant used.
I also made the mistake of not steaming the eggplants long enough. It was soft but still had a bite. Eggplant is a vegetable that you will not enjoy if under cooked, so it has to be steamed until tender.
The second time I made this, I used only one eggplant. The eggplant used is the one that is long, not those round types. For just one eggplant, I used the amount of seasoning in the recipe which was meant for a bigger portion.
The seasoning must have bold flavors and this time I liked it even better. Korean cooking uses loads of garlic and onions which suits me fine as I am a garlic and onion lover.
I am really loving the side dishes that I have made so far. The flavors are so tasty and appetizing. I am really looking forwards to trying many more Korean recipes.
Korean Eggplant Sidedish (Gaji-namul)
Recipe source : Adapted from Maangchi
Ingredients :
- 1 eggplant
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 1 stalk spring onions, sliced
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 2 tsp Korean hot pepper flakes
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp sesame seeds, toasted and crushed
Method :
1. Cut the eggplant crosswise into 2 inch pieces. Then cut each piece into quarters.
2. Steam for 15-20 minutes or until softened.
3. Meanwhile make the seasoning.
4. In a mixing bowl, add garlic, spring onions, soya sauce, fish sauce, hot pepper flakes and sesame oil. Mix to combine everything together. Set aside.
5. When the eggplant is cooked, set aside to cool.
6. Once cooled, tear the eggplant into smaller strips.
7. Add eggplant into the seasoning and mix.
8. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve!
2. Steam for 15-20 minutes or until softened.
3. Meanwhile make the seasoning.
4. In a mixing bowl, add garlic, spring onions, soya sauce, fish sauce, hot pepper flakes and sesame oil. Mix to combine everything together. Set aside.
5. When the eggplant is cooked, set aside to cool.
6. Once cooled, tear the eggplant into smaller strips.
7. Add eggplant into the seasoning and mix.
8. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve!
I love to eat brinjals, especially those steamed until very soft ones but I eat them with bread just like that without any seasoning so your dish is way too flavourful for me though I am sure it is super tasty for those who love strong flavours.
ReplyDeleteYour have a very peculiar tastebud. Plain steamed brinjal with bread and no seasoning hmmm....
DeleteI would have steamed brinjals with some fried shallots & soy sauce. But the Korean version looks good too...nice to go with plain rice.
ReplyDeleteI also love grilled brinjals with sambal belacan hee..hee...
DeleteMy girl would love this. She loves egg plant and she love banchan, a winning combination. Hey! I've got Korean in my blogpost today too. What a coincidence!
ReplyDeleteI love Korean food, maybe except for kimchi LOL!
DeleteI am a big eggplant fan when it is cooked well. Undercooking is a no no. This one looks yum.
ReplyDeleteI love it roasted too. Must make that one of these days.
DeleteI loved to eat Egg Plants since I was young. The Thais like to roast or fry after dipping with beaten eggs. It goes well with the other ulam and sambal belacan. Sadly I have developed allergy to egg plants since last year. Bye bye Egg Plants....
ReplyDeleteOh dear, now you can't enjoy eggplant. My mum and my grandma roast the eggplant and eat with sambal belachan. Just that with rice, sudah cukup!
DeleteYou are right, eggplants must be soft, if not won't be nice. Yours look so tasty!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I must cook with eggplants more often.
DeleteI love eggplants and I have tried this recipe. One problem is I don't like raw garlic. Maybe I should try again with fried garlic.
ReplyDeleteOh, perhaps fried garlic will bring the taste to another level!
DeleteThat eggplant dish that you like at Chinese restaurants...I don't think there's a specific name. You just ask for eggplant with minced pork...hahahah! ;D I cook that all the time at home too. I love eggplant too (my favourite yong tau foo that involves a vegetable!) but it's scary to fry them as they're like sponges...they just keep absorbing oil (so I try to not eat it too often). Your steam version is not as scary.
ReplyDeleteI found that dish at Esquire Kitchen recently hee..hee.. Please share your recipe, OK? hee..hee...
DeleteOh ya, they absorb oil like nobody's business! I tried it once and got frightened because I had to keep adding oil.
I like brinjal but cook with sambal or steamed. But my kids dont like it so I seldom cook at hine.
ReplyDeleteI love it grilled over the stove and then eaten with sambal belacan. Heaven!
Deletei love your way of cooking eggplant - totally agreed that it needs to be tender but still retain that full-bodied lusciousness for a lovely chew :D
ReplyDeleteI am going to eat more eggplant!
DeleteLooks healthy to me... just steaming and less oil too! Sprinkling sesame seeds on top is a good idea.. I see some Chinese students over here do that quite often on their dishes. Next time I go back and buy a bottle! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's very good in curries too!
DeleteI think this dish is good to go with rice also. I dare not cook any eggplant dishes as it tend to absorb oil but this steamed version has no such problem!
ReplyDeleteI don't mind eating fried eggplants at the restaurant. As long as I don't see how much oil is absorbed, I am OK. hah..hah...
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