Asian-style grilled eggplant

I love eggplant and have often been told that I overdo it on my table. I love it because it is easy to cook and works well with an almost unlimited variety of flavours. Here is another favourite recipe and cooking style that I love.

This is a simple recipe that takes just a few minutes to make. For this variety, the eggplant is smothered in dressing and baked for 10-12 minutes, and it is ready. The salt from the soy sauce and tartness from the vinegar are perfect flavourings for the mild eggplant. Simple and elegant, this dish can be served as an appetizer or a side dish.

Essential Pepin has been a heavy tome in this celebrity chef's work over the decades. The book is loaded with recipes from this simple dish to more complex classics. For those who like and want to get into French cuisine, this is a lovely starter book, one that is essential for any kitchen.

For more recipes from this cookbook, click here.

Ingredients: 6-8 small, long Japanese eggplants

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

Scallions or chives, thinly sliced, to garnish

or

Sesame seeds, lightly toasted, to garnish

Heat the oven to 375° F.

Halve the eggplants lengthwise, keeping a bit of the base. Make a cross-hatch in the flesh without cutting through the skin.

Mix the soy, vinegar, sugar and oil well until the sugar is completely dissolved.

Lay the eggplants on a lined baking sheet with the cut side up. Drizzle the soy mix on top using a spoon, ensuring that the mix gets into the cut groves. This helps favour the flesh with the sauce.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until the eggplant is soft and mushy.

Serve immediately adorned with either of the garnishes.