Misoeggplant Recipes

MISO EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C / fan 160°C / 350°F / gas mark 4.
• Line a large baking tray with baking parchment and set aside.
• Halve the eggplants lengthways and flip them over. Cut a thin slice off the bottom's skin side in order to stabilise the eggplant.
• Flip it over again and score the flesh in diamond shapes. Be careful not to slice it all the way through.
• Place the eggplants in the lined baking tray and brush each half with half of the oil.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes, checking halfway through to see if more oil is required. I.e. if it looks dry, give it a brush with oil. The eggplant should be soft at the end of cooking time.
• While the eggplants are baking, make the miso sauce.
• Place all the miso sauce ingredients, except the sesame oil, in a small pot and bring to simmer.
• Continue to cook until the miso paste and sugar has dissolved.
• Stir in the sesame oil. Remove the heat and retrieve the eggplants, once cooked.
• Preheat the broiler / grill.
• Baste each eggplant with equal amounts of miso sauce then place under the broiler / grill until caramelised and golden. This will take about 3-4 minutes.
• Decorate with sesame seeds and chives. Serve immediately as a starter. Enjoy!

MISO EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Slice eggplant into 1/4-inch circles.
• Fry in sesame seed oil for a few minutes.
• Add water and mirin or sake and cover and simmer until tender.
• Mix miso, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl.
• Add to the eggplant mixture and stir-fry.
• Optional: For a thicker "gravy", Mix optional cornstarch and water together. Bring to boil and add cornstarch mixture. Let boil for one more minute, stirring constantly and lower temperature to simmer for 5 more minutes.

HONEY-MISO GLAZED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Halve 2 to 3 Japanese eggplants lengthwise and crosswise. Brush both sides with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Place skin-side down on a foil-lined baking sheet. Roast at 400 degrees F until tender, about 15 minutes. Whisk 2 tablespoons each white miso paste and honey and 1 teaspoon sesame oil. Flip the eggplant, brush with the glaze and broil until lightly charred, about 4 minutes. Top with sliced scallions and cilantro.

MISO GLAZED GRILLED JAPANESE EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat a charcoal grill or kamado-style ceramic charcoal cooker for direct grilling over high heat.
• Whisk together the miso, mirin, sugar and 2 tablespoons water until combined.
• Brush the cut-side of the eggplant with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the eggplant, cut-side down, until lightly golden brown, about 4 minutes. Turn the eggplant over, brush with some of the glaze and continue grilling for 2 more minutes. Brush with more glaze, flip over and grill until the cut-side is caramelized, about 4 minutes. Remove to a platter, cut-side up, and sprinkle with mint.

MISO-STUFFED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• In a large steamer, steam the eggplant for 10 to 12 minutes, until very tender. Turn on the broiler.
• Combine the miso and tamari in a small bowl. Make a 1/2-inch-deep lengthwise slit down the eggplants. Spoon 2 tablespoons of miso into each eggplant.
• Place on a baking sheet and slide under the broiler until slightly browned, about 2 to 3 minutes.

MISO-ROASTED CHINESE EGGPLANTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Toss eggplant chunks with olive oil in a bowl and transfer to a rimmed baking sheet.
• Roast in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, turning once.
• Mix miso, sugar, soy sauce, water, mirin, vinegar, and sesame oil together in a bowl. Pour over eggplants and toss. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake for 5 minutes; toss. Continue to bake until tender, about 5 minutes more. Serve.

JAPANESE EGGPLANT WITH MISO

Steps:

• In a bowl mix together miso, sugar, sake, mirin, sake and egg yolk.
• Wash eggplant and cut lengthways in 1cm thick pieces. Sprinkle with salt and leave ½ hour. Rinse, pat dry then brush with a little veg oil on both sides.
• Either BBQ, grill or panfry eggplant until soft.
• Spread one side with miso mix, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Grill for a few minutes until the miso bubbles on top.
• Serve, garnished with a little julienned spring onion greens.

NOBU'S EGGPLANT WITH MISO

Steps:

• Heat oven to broil. Line a baking sheet with paper towels; set aside. In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat 2 inches of oil to 360 degrees. Working in batches, place eggplants in pan, skin side up, and fry 1 minute. Turn and fry 30 seconds more. Transfer eggplants to baking sheet and let drain.
• Transfer eggplants, skin side down, to an unlined baking sheet. Spread each half with slightly more than 1 tablespoon miso. Broil until miso begins to darken and caramelize, about 30 seconds to a few minutes, depending on the strength of your broiler. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and garnish with pickled ginger and plums.

MISO-GLAZED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and cut off the stem and calyx. Using the tip of a paring knife, cut an incision down the middle of each half, making sure not to cut through the skin, but cutting down to it. Salt the eggplant lightly and let sit for 10 minutes. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment and brush with sesame oil.
• Blot the eggplants with paper towels and place, cut side down, on the baking sheets. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until the skin is beginning to shrivel and the flesh is soft. Remove from the oven, carefully turn the eggplants over, and preheat the broiler.
• To make the glaze, combine the mirin and sake in the smallest saucepan you have and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil 20 seconds, taking care not to boil off much of the liquid, then turn the heat to low and stir in the miso and the sugar. Whisk over medium-low heat without letting the mixture boil, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and whisk in the sesame oil.
• Brush the eggplants with the miso glaze, using up all of the glaze. Place under the broiler, about 2 inches from the heat, and broil for about 1 minute, until the glaze begins to bubble and looks shiny. Remove from the heat. Allow to cool if desired or serve hot. To serve, cut the eggplant halves on the diagonal into 1- to 1-1/2-inch slices.

MISO-GLAZED EGGPLANT SLICES

Steps:

• Heat a grill pan over high heat and spray well with cooking spray. Spray eggplant slices with cooking spray and grill in the hot pan, turning occasionally, until soft and charred, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile whisk oil, honey, tamari, white miso, and red pepper together in a large bowl. Add eggplant slices and toss to coat. Sprinkle with cilantro.

MISO-GLAZED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat broiler.
• Whisk together shiro miso, vinegar, water, sugar, and ginger until sugar is dissolved.
• Brush a large shallow baking pan with oil and arrange eggplant, cut sides up, in pan. Brush tops with 2 tablespoons oil (total). Broil eggplant 4 to 6 inches from heat until it begins to turn pale golden and soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Brush generously with miso mixture and broil 2 minutes more. Brush eggplant with miso again and rotate pan 180 degrees (do not turn eggplant over), then continue to broil until eggplant is tender and glaze is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve sprinkled with scallions.
• *Available at Asian markets, specialty foods shops, and Uwajimaya (800-889-1928).