Eggplant Unagi - Vegan

As per the  Wikipedia,  Unagi don is a dish from Japan. It consists of large bowl filled with steamed white rice and topped with fillets of eel grilled in a Japanese style Kabayaki , very similar to Teriyaki. Those fillets are glazed with sweet soy sauce and caramelized over charcoal fire. But with this Vegan version Eggplant is perfect to give fish kind of texture and look. You can use tofu also but I just love any kind of Eggplants so I go with Eggplant. You can make the sauce and cooked both side of 

eggplant , applying sauce on both sides and its done. 

You can long purple eggplant for this and make sure when you flip you don't break the skin , since presentation is also very important. You can roast or bake the eggplant too. But I like stove top method best. 

Ingredients : 

2 Long Chinese or Japanese purple eggplant

Sesame Seeds

Cooked rice

Oil

Sauce 

3 tbsp. Mirin

1/3 cup of hot water

2 tbsp. light soy sauce

1 tbsp. maple syrup

1/2 tsp. sugar

Method :

In a bowl, add mirin, hot water, light soy sauce , maple syrup and mix it. and keep it aside.

Trim off the eggplant top , then cut into 4 or 5 inch sections, Steam over high heat until tender about 8 to 10 minutes. 

Once the eggplant is cooked and cooled down, use a sharp knife to cut it open like a book but careful not to cut thru skin. 

Then make another slit on the right and then left. Now score the flesh to create a holder for the sauce.

Heat a non stick pan with oil over medium heat.

Put the cut side down and pan fry till its golden brown 

Apply the sauce one tbsp. at a time

Then flit again so now flesh is at the bottom  of the pan and taking all the sauce while you are applying sauce on the skin. 

To serve you can roast some scallions or bok choi or spinach or any greens in little oil and salt or you can skip that too and just eat the rice and eggplant

To assemble, put cooked rice in a bowl , top it with eggplant and drizzle with extra sauce and garnished with sesame seeds and enjoy. I had some fried rice leftovers so I used that one.

Soy Chunks Dhanshak, Brown rice and Kachumber

Dhanshak is a Parsees all time favorite and must have Sunday Lunch. Its not at all complicated just a long list of ingredients but it will be done in no time. Generally it's with Mutton (Lamb /Goat) or Chicken too. So give that feeling I made it with Soy chunks along with vegetables. 

Dhan mean grains so it has rice and different lentils, shak means vegetables so mix of grains and vegetables and you have a feast. Its traditionally served with brown rice, kachumber and kababs too. 

For brown rice traditionally they brown the sugar so that gives the nice brown color but I dont like the sweet so I added soy sauce and that was giving me umami while it was cooking and flavor was spot on. 

so let's start

Dhan Shak Ingredients : 

Pulses

2 cup Tuver dal - split  chickpea yellow lentils

1/2 cup masor dal - red split lentils

1/4 cup Chana Dal 

1/4 cup Mung dal - Yellow Split lentils

Vegetables :

1 cup diced pumpkin or sweet potatoes

1/2 cup greens - either methi , spinach, kale

handful chopped mint leaves

1 green onion chopped

2 chopped tomato

1 potato cut in big chunks

1 large red onions sliced thinly

1 cup chopped eggplant

2 green chilies or as per our spice level

1 cup soaked and dry soy chunks

handful chopped coriander leaves

Spices : 

1 tbsp. Turmeric Powder

1 tbsp. Cumin and coriander powder

1 tbsp. Ground ginger garlic paste

1 tbsp. Kashmiri red chili powder

1/2 tbsp. Red Chili powder

3 tbsp. oil 

Salt as per taste

Method :

Wash all lentils and soaked separately at least for 2 hours. 

Before use it , wash again and keep it aside. 

Heat a pressure cooker and add oil in it. 

Fry the onions until its brown , then add green chilies, and ginger garlic paste, cook till raw smells goes away. Then add all spices and mix it and cook for a minute on low flame.

Add all the vegetables and mix it with the spices. Check the seasoning as per your taste.

 Leave some coriander leaves for garnished. 

Add dal in it and add enough water to cover the dals and vegetables. Pressure cook till 3 whistle. 

Let the air pressure goes normally. 

By the time let's make the rice. 

Rice Ingredients :

2 cup rice

1 chopped  red onion

1 Bay leaf

2 green whole cardamom pods

3 cloves

1 tsp. cumin seeds

salt as per taste , we are going to use soy sauce too so don't add more taste

instead of water, you can use vegetable stock for more flavor

1 tsp. Soy sauce , if you want to use sugar, then skip this and 2 tsp. sugar

1 tbsp. oil

Method :

Wash and soak the rice for 2 hours too. 

In a big pan, add oil and fry the onions till its brown. 

If you are adding sugar, take out the onion and in the same pan add sugar and caramelized it. 

Add a cup of hot water and melt the sugar and then add the fried onions back.

If you are not using sugar then after frying the onions, Add rice in it and stir for about 5 minutes. 

Add the whole spices in it and cook for a minute. 

Now add 3 and half cups of warm water / stock and salt. 

Once it comes to boil, lower the flame and cook the rice  till the water is absorbed and its cooked. 

ALWAYS , allows the rice to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving. 

Let's make kachumber : 

Kachumber (Red onion, tomato and cucumber salad)

1 medium red onions finely sliced or matchstick slices, what ever way you prefer, make sure you do the same way for tomato and cucumber too

1 tomato chopped

1 small green chili chopped

salt  as per taste

Lime juice as per taste

1 tsp. olive or vegetable oil

fresh chopped mint and coriander leaves

Method:

Chopped all vegetables and herbs and all the salt, lime juice and oil and mix it and serve it with the dhan shak platter 

Rice 

Kachumber 

Quick Malaysian Styled Vegetable Curry

If there is any restaurant that I missed going to is, in Hoboken's Satay Malaysian one, We saw it from construction to finish phase and visited so many times when we used to lived there that owner used to know us and get hot sauce before we ordered anything since he knew that I love spicy food. He make sure that whatever we order it comes out vegetarian. 

Its been a almost  one and half decades we moved from there and visited , but that taste is still on my tongue and wanted to make same thing for me without stepping out of my home and finally did it. This is as simple as it is but flavor is there and oh so delicious. Eggplant and okra , tomato is a staple ingredients in this dish, instead of Tofu you can add other protein. and just make curry with few chicken in it and it will becomes another dish, I will make that soon and will share it but of course without chicken though.

This dish is very common to find in Malaysia at street hawker stalls that sells this. The colorful vegetables and not so spicy curry always make my wanting more. 

The sauce is from fresh red jalapenos, shallot, garlic and ginger, make a paste and mix it with coconut milk and vegetables. You just need plain rice to soak up the goodness of the curry. 

Ingredients : 

4 tbsp. oil

2 small eggplants, cut into 2 inch long matchsticks

6 okra, removed tips and sliced

1/2 cup chopped cabbage

2 tomatoes cut in to wedges

1 onion cut in to slices

1 cup red jalapenos (depend upon your spice level)

1 shallot roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves

2 slices of ginger

2 tsp.  cumin powder

2 tsp.  coriander powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

2 cups vegetable stock

1/2 cup tofu cut

3 curry leaves

salt as per taste

1 cup coconut milk

1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

Method : 

Heat a pan, add 2 tbsp. oil and cook eggplant and okra, you just need to cook eggplant and okra so its raw taste will go away. Once its done, take it out. 

To make the paste, add jalapenos, shallot, garlic , ginger and 1 tbsp. oil in blender. Make a fine paste.

Heat the same pan again. Add the remaining oil and sauté the chili paste, stirring often, cook till extra water evaporates and paste is cooked. 

Add cumin, coriander , turmeric and sauté for few more seconds until nice aroma comes. 

Add the vegetable stock, and bring it to boil. Once its gets boiled, add the cabbage, tomatoes, eggplant, curry leaves .

Cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes then add coconut milk and check for seasoning , add salt and cook for another 2-3 minutes. 

When its done, add lime juice, taste and adjust the seasoning again if needed. 

Serve warm with plain Jasmin rice or any white rice. 

For me I have to have this curry with hot sambal on side , without that my meal is not complete. 

 

Korean Spicy Garlic Eggplant

If you follow my blog, by now you should have known that I love eggplant, round, long , thick, thin, any shape eggplant I can eat it. This is my new favorite way to eat eggplant, its so flavorful and its goes perfect with steamed rice. You don't need any fancy rice with this since eggplant has so much flavor you need to enjoy that with plain rice. You can make this as per your taste, mild or spicy since it has gochujang and Korean red pepper powder. 

I made this for my diner and leftover I enjoyed it for my lunch next day and it was tasted even better. 

so lets start making it. You need long purple eggplant for this.

Ingredients : 

2 purple eggplant

2 to 3 cloves of garlic chopped

1 green onion chopped

2 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. agave syrup, honey or sugar or maple syrup

1 tbsp. sesame oil

1 or 2 tsp. gochujang sauce 

1 tsp. Korean red pepper powder or flakes

2 tsp. sesame seeds

Method : 

Remove caps of eggplant. Depend upon the eggplant size, cut it in 3 inches long then cut into halves lengthwise.

Bring water to boil in a steamer pot. 

Put all the cut eggplants skin side down on steamer. 

Cover and steam for 5 minutes. 

While its cooking combine, garlic, green onion, soy sauce, agave, sesame oil, gochujang , red pepper powder in a serving bowl. 

When eggplant is done cooking, remove from steamer and cool it down for 5 minutes or till you can handle. 

Once its cold cut eggplant in three pieces lengthwise. 

Add it to the sauce mixture and mix gently with spoon not to break it. if you can handle the heat in your hand , use hand to mix it otherwise wear gloves and mix it. 

Garnish with sesame seeds and serve with warm white rice.