Steamed Eggplant 蒸茄子

蒸茄子 Steamed eggplant is a home style dish that typically isn’t served in restaurants. Fitting with a Cantonese sense of taste, the natural flavor of eggplants should still come through so it’s not a highly seasoned dish. I think eggplant has a natural sweetness that’s accentuated when it’s made like this and it’s so easy to make.

Since this is a simple dish, and the flavor should highlight the flavor of eggplant, my mom says that ginger does not pair well with this cooking method, so only use garlic.

While I learned this from my mom, you don’t really need 混合醬 wahn hahp jeung (mixed sauce) to make it, she sometimes replaces this with oyster sauce. Still, when it comes to cooking with social distancing and getting stuff for your pantry, you might not be able to get all the ingredients. That’s okay if you don’t have it. That sauce is mostly fermented soybeans, so you can surely use other forms of fermented soybeans like doengjang or miso. You just need to adjust the rest of the seasoning to accommodate for the taste of those sauces.

蒸茄子 Steamed eggplant is a comforting and nourishing dish and it’s nice to include fresh vegetables in your diet while you’re stuck at home.

RECIPE:

1 eggplant
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
About 1 tsp of 混合醬 wahn hahp jeung (mixed sauce), oyster sauce, or any other kind of fermented soybean sauce
Neutral oil, drizzle
1 pinch of chicken bouillon powder or salt
Sugar to taste (a small amount, like a large pinch)
1/2 tsp cornstarch
Soy sauce, drizzle (optional)

Over high heat, bring water in a large pot or wok to a boil set with a rack for steaming.

Wash and cut the stem off an eggplant. Cut into pieces and set in a plate for steaming. Chop garlic and add this to the plate.

In the same plate, add the 混合醬 wahn hahp jeung, a drizzle of oil, sugar, chicken bouillon or salt, sugar, cornstarch, and soy sauce (optional). Mix to combine. Since this is a vegetarian dish, you can also safely taste the seasoning with you finger as well. The coating should be light.

When the pot is ready for steaming, reduce the heat to medium-high. Steam for about 7-8 minutes or until the eggplants are tender and enjoy!