Eggplant is more than just a vehicle for tomato sauce and cheese. In this recipe from Vietnamese Food Any Day: Simple Recipes for True, Fresh Flavors, author Andrea Nguyen takes the meaty nightshade and transforms it into a Vietnamese classic called cà tím nướng mỡ hành, or grilled eggplant with green onion oil.
The dish consists of roasted eggplant (nutritious skin included!) that is served with a green onion oil and a dipping sauce made with vegan fish sauce and garlic. “When I learned that eggplant skin is loaded with antioxidants, I began thinking about how I could tweak the popular side dish to retain the skin,” Nguyen explained in her cookbook. “Surprisingly, microwaving the entire eggplant proved to be the best way to effortlessly and evenly cook the purple orbs to a wonderful plush texture and sweet flavor. The skin is chewy-tender, and very pleasant to eat.”
In this dish, the hearty fruit gets a “delicate sweet smokiness” from a green onion topping that includes garlic, vegan fish sauce, and Spanish smoked paprika.
Additional eggplant recipes
Ready for some more eggplant-centric recipes in your life? Try this recipe for Southern-Fried Catfish Made With Eggplant.
Recipe reprinted with permission from Vietnamese Food Any Day: Simple Recipes for True, Fresh Flavors by Andrea Nguyen, copyright © 2019. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
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