Japanese Eggplant Teriyaki Style Recipes

GRILLED EGGPLANT TERIYAKI

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill to medium heat.
• Slice eggplant into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Sprinkle with salt and let stand in a colander set over a bowl or the sink for 20 minutes. Rinse briefly and pat dry.
• Pour marinade over eggplant and let stand for at least 10 minutes or up to overnight in the refrigerator. Remove from marinade, reserving leftover marinade. Place eggplant on grill, cook until eggplant is cooked through and lightly browned on all sides, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from grill. Serve with reserved marinade and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes.

TERIYAKI SAUCE AND MARINADE

Steps:

• Bring mirin to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour in soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar. Season with garlic, ginger, pepper flakes, and black pepper; simmer an additional 5 minutes. Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.

SPICY STIR-FRIED JAPANESE EGGPLANT AND CUCUMBER

Steps:

• Trim off the calyx end of the eggplants. Cut in half lengthwise, then slice thin (about 1/4 inch). Lightly salt, and toss in a colander. Allow to sit for 15 minutes while you prepare the other ingredients. Squeeze out excess water, then dry between sheets of paper towel.
• Meanwhile, trim off the ends of the cucumbers. Cut in half lengthwise, then slice on the diagonal into 1/4-inch thick slices.
• Combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, salt and sesame oil in a small bowl. Place all of the ingredients near your wok or frying pan.
• Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok or 12-inch steel skillet over high heat until a drop of water evaporates within a second or two from the surface of the pan. Add the peanut or canola oil to the sides of the pan and tilt the pan to distribute. Add the eggplant. Stir-fry for three to four minutes until cooked through. Add the ginger and red pepper flakes, and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the cucumbers and scallions or chives. Stir-fry 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce mixture to the wok, and stir-fry one minute until the cucumber just begins to wilt. Remove from the heat and serve.

JAPANESE EGGPLANT, TERIYAKI STYLE

Steps:

• Heat broiler.
• Using a sharp knife, lightly score eggplant flesh in a criss-cross pattern.
• Arrange the eggplant skin side up in a single layer on a non-stick broiler pan.
• Lightly brush with half the oil; broil 4 inches away from heat source for 3 minutes or until dimpled but not charred.
• Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine soy sauce, sugar and mirin.
• Turn eggplant slices over and brush with remaining oil; broil 1 minute.
• Brush with soy sauce mixture; broil 1 more minute more until eggplant is tender when it's pierced with a knife.
• Sprinkle with scallions before serving.

SUSAN'S JAPANESE EGGPLANT (AUBERGINE) TERIYAKI

Steps:

• Cut eggplants into 1" slices and soak in water for 10-15 minutes. Drain and dry them.
• Heat large, non-stick skillet and add 1/8 inch of vegetable oil and cook the eggplant slices on both sides until tender, adding more oil as needed.
• Remove from heat.
• Combine the other ingredients, except the seeds, including a few drops of sesame oil. Add to eggplant and let it sit for 10-20 minutes marinating.
• Before serving, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.