fish fragrant eggplant

This spicy eggplant stir fry is an easy, flavorful side dish that is great for dinner. Feel free to adjust the amount of spice specified below to suit your taste. You can usually find doubanjiang in large Asian supermarkets or Chinese grocers. For pan-frying directions, see notes.

Spicy Eggplant Stir Fry

eggplant

canola oil (or any neutral oil)

water

cornstarch

garlic

ginger

doubanjiang ((see note 2))

Sichuan peppercorn (ground (optional, see note 3))

red chili

sugar ((see note 4))

salt

scallions

sesame seeds

Slice the eggplant into 2.5 to 3-inch sections. Then, slice each section into batons (or strips) that are about 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick. You don’t need to salt the eggplant for this recipe (see note 5 for more info). Set the eggplant aside.

Add 3/4 cup of oil to a wok and heat it over medium-high heat. (See note 5) Once the temperature reaches about 375ºF, it is ready for frying. You can test the temperature with a thermometer or by taking a small piece of eggplant and adding it to the wok. If the oil around the eggplant bubbles rapidly, the oil is ready for frying. 

Working in batches, add a large handful of eggplant batons to the wok. Flash fry for about 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds, flipping the batons halfway. Using tongs, transfer the eggplants into a spider spatula. Give the spider spatula a gentle shake to shake off any excess oil from the eggplant. Then, transfer the flash-fried eggplant to a plate and flash fry another batch of eggplant batons. 

Eggplant absorbs oil like a sponge. After about 2 or 3 batches of frying, you’ll notice that there’s less oil in the wok. As a result, you’ll want to fry in smaller batches for the remaining eggplant. You can also add more oil to the wok. 

Once all the eggplant has been flash fried, turn off the heat. Pour some of the excess oil into a heat-safe bowl, leaving about 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok. (See note 7)

In a small bowl, make the cornstarch slurry by whisking 1/2 cup water with 1/4 teaspoon of cornstarch. This slurry will thicken the sauce later. 

Heat the wok over medium-high heat again. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute, until fragrant. Next, add the doubanjiang and swirl the paste into the hot oil. Cook for another 30 seconds. Then, add the ground Sichuan peppercorn (if using), red chili flakes, sugar, and salt. Stir to combine.

Whisk the cornstarch slurry again before pouring it into the wok. Bring the liquid to a rapid boil and let the sauce simmer for 30 seconds to a minute to allow the sauce to thicken slightly. 

Add all the flash-fried eggplant back into the wok and stir to combine with the sauce. Turn off the heat and transfer the eggplant to a serving plate. Garnish the spicy eggplant with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Serve the spicy eggplant stir fry with jasmine rice.

Recipe video above. Tried making this iconic Sichuan dish before and been underwhelmed? This  one’s the real deal! Called Yu Xiang Qie Zi, this is straight from our RTM Chef Hannah, born and raised in the Sichuan province of China, a family of chefs at that! Even her chef father gave this recipe his rare stamp of approval.🙌🏻For full authenticity, grab broad bean sauce and pickled chilli from an Asian store. That said, our supermarket-sub version is so good, we’d have happily shared it - if we hadn’t already tasted the OG!Traditionally, the eggplant is deep fried (and yes, that’s why it’s so melt-in-your-mouth good). But see Note 1 for a fantastic no-fry pan-steamed option! Spiciness - Low mild. There&#39;s not that much chilli in it!

Chinese eggplant and minced pork - Sichuan Fish Fragrant Eggplant

vegetable oil

/ 3.5 oz pork mince / ground pork ((Note 3))

tbsp ginger (, finely minced)

tbsp garlic (, finely minced)

onion

tbsp broad bean sauce

tbsp light soy sauce ((Note 7))

tsp dark soy sauce ((Note 7))

tbsp sugar

tsp honey

tsp black vinegar ((Note 8))

white rice

ABBREVIATED - Mix sauce. Fry eggplant until soft. Keep 2T oil. Cook pork 2 min, then garlic, ginger and white part green onion for 30 sec. Cook chilli + broad bean sauce 1 min. Add eggplant and sauce in 2 batches, once thickened, serve!

Sauce - Mix the cornflour and light soy in a jug until lump free. Add the remaining Sauce ingredients and mix to combine. Set aside.

Fry eggplant - Heat oil in a wok on high heat until hot - 180°C/350°F. Add half of the eggplant and fry for around 4 minutes, stirring and turning gently a few times, until soft all the way through and a bit browned on the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel lined tray. Repeat with remaining eggplant.

Remove oil - Carefully remove the leftover oil from the wok except 2 tablespoons, for cooking.

Stir fry - Cool the wok slightly then return to high heat. Add the pork and cook for 1 - 2 minutes, breaking it up as you go, until you no longer see pink. Add garlic, ginger, white part of the green onion. Stir fry for 30 seconds. Add pickled red chilli and broad bean sauce. Cook for 1 minute.

Add sauce - Give the Sauce a quick mix (to dissolve settled cornflour). Add eggplant, then add half the Sauce into the wok, toss gently until the sauce starts thickening - about 30 to 45 seconds. Add remaining Sauce, toss gently for 45 seconds until it thickens (goal: between maple syrup and honey).

Serve - Turn off heat. Pour into a serving bowl, sprinkle with green onion. Serve with rice.

FULL RECIPE:

Brown eggplant - Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large non-stick pan (with lid) over medium high heat. Pan fry eggplant for 1 1/2 minutes on each side until lightly browned.

Steam - Carefully add 1/3 cup water around the eggplant (it will steam, so be careful). Immediately cover with a lid to trap the steam. Steam for 2 minutes or until the water has evaporated and the eggplant is soft all the way through (if needed, add more water and keep steaming).

Proceed - Transfer eggplant to a plate. Proceed with recipe using the large non stick pan rather than wok.

Healthier pan-steamed eggplant option:

I have made this 4 times in the last 2 months! When my husband saw some ground pork in the fridge, he asked if I were making the eggplant dish and got all excited when I said yes.

Killer dish. I'm definitely making it more often, came out better than my local (fairly good) restaurant's version, and I even did the sauté/steam version rather than the full deep fry. I used the longer, skinny Chinese eggplants from my Asian market. 
I imagine it would also work fine with leaner ground meats, too, as the sauce is that silky and delicious.

Had to make a lot of subs (we live in rural Essex, UK so no asian shops to stock up on special ingredients)  for this and it was still sumptuous. Snuck in some cooked broadbean mashed up and some miso and a crispy chilli oil condiment.
Home grown aubergine have done well this year so big thank you for helping use them to make a delicious meal!

So delicious! Husband made this for dinner this week, and the flavours are the best. Making Nagi’s Dan Dan Noodles tonight (for the millionth time!). Never misses!

Excellent recipe. Full of flavour. I am reducing sugar in my diet so I put the honey in but left out the sugar. It didn't miss it. I may have erred on the high side with the pickled chilli. That was also a good result. Enjoyment factor : 5/5

Absolutely delicious meal . 
Outstanding recipe thank you both

We made it and were impressed at how the longer we ate it how it grew on us. Loved it and will make again.

I cooked this last night after getting the broad-bean paste and pickled chilli from our local Asian food store. I had 180g minced pork available so used it all. The result was a winner. Thank you for this recipe, it will be a staple on our menu.

This Yu Xiang Qie Zi (Fish-Fragrant Eggplant when literally translated) is a Sichuan style chili garlic eggplant dish. Eggplant strips are pan-fried until tender, then stir-fried with aromatics, ground pork, and tender cloud ear mushrooms in a mouthwatering spicy, sweet, and sour sauce! It’s easy to make on any given weeknight, exploding with flavor, and incredibly delicious with a bowl of steamed rice!

Yu Xiang Qie Zi (Fish-Fragrant Eggplant)

TBLS Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce

TBLS Shao Xing Rice Wine

TBLS Chinkiang Vinegar (Chinese black vinegar)

TSP Dark Soy Sauce

TSP Sesame Oil

1-inch knob of Ginger – minced

2-7 Red Chilies, to taste – chopped

Spring Onion – chopped,

ground/minced

TBLS

2-3 TSP White Sugar,

TBLS Corn Starch + ½ cup Water (mixed together to make a slurry)

TSP Chili Oil (optional)

Prepare the fresh ingredients

Mince the garlic and ginger and chop the fresh red chilies and spring onion. Separate the whites and green parts of the spring onion as they will be added to the wok at different times. Slice the eggplant into 3-inch strips. Add them to a bowl of water and soak for 15-20 minutes. Then drain into colander or a fine mesh strainer and set aside. (Note: Soaking the eggplant strips in water makes them less prone to absorbing oil like sponges. It enables us to get away with pan-frying instead of deep frying them first.)

Make the sauce

Combine the low sodium light soy sauce, Shao Xing rice wine, Chinkiang vinegar, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil in a small bowl or measuring cup (the latter will make it easier to pour into the wok). Mix with a spoon to thoroughly combine, then set aside.

Boil the mushrooms

Soak the mushrooms in a bowl of water for 20 minutes to rehydrate. Then drain and rinse thoroughly. Cut the wood ears into smaller pieces if they are on the larger side. Then heat water over high heat in a small pot until boiling. Add the rehydrated mushrooms and boil for 3-5 minutes. Drain into a colander and rinse the mushrooms thoroughly again (the water from the pot will be dirty). Set aside.

Make the corn starch slurry

Combine the corn starch and water in a small bowl or measuring cup (for easier pouring). Mix until combined and a slurry has formed, then set aside.

Cook the rice

Cook the rice according to package instructions and set aside. (If using a rice cooker, you can leave it to cook while you prepare the eggplant stir-fry.)

Prep:

Heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil in a large wok over high heat. Once hot, turn the heat down to medium-high and add the eggplant strips. Cook for 10-12 minutes, tossing occasionally, until slightly browned and tender. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate and set aside. Return the wok back to the stovetop.

Heat the remainder peanut oil, sesame oil, and chili oil (if using). Once hot, add the garlic, ginger, and spring onion whites. Stir-fry for a minute until fragrant. Then add the red chilies and stir-fry for another minute to combine.

Next, add the ground pork and the Dou Ban Jiang on top. Cook and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, breaking the lumps as you go, until the pork is no longer pink and everything is combined.

Add the dried red chilies and the mushrooms. Toss briefly to combine, then add the eggplant strips and pour the sauce you made earlier over everything. Season with sugar and toss to combine.

Then give the corn starch slurry a quick stir with a spoon (the corn starch will have settled at the bottom) and pour it into the wok. Stir-fry for a minute or two, or until the sauce has thickened.

Add the spring onion greens and stir-fry briefly for 10 seconds to combine, then switch off the heat.

To Serve

Transfer to a serving dish and and serve immediately with the warm steamed rice.

For the Yu Xiang Eggplant:

One of our favourite dishes! I make it at least once a month. Thanks for the delicious recipe Lavina!

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