Grilled Asian Eggplant with Stir-Fried Veggies

Stir fry is so versatile we have it all of the time. I usually serve it with chicken or shrimp, varying the sauce and the vegetables so it doesn't get repetitive. Our Alan's Orchard box came with Guyana Eggplants and a recipe for Grilled Eggplant with a Soy Ginger Glaze so I thought that it would go perfectly over some stir fry. The glaze is delicious and gives the eggplant an amazingly sweet and buttery flavor. You can serve the eggplant alone over rice or as a side dish but it works perfectly as a complete meal over some jasmine rice and whatever stir fry vegetables you have in the fridge.

Ingredients:

2 Long and Skinny Eggplants (About 1 lb)

3 Tbsp Soy Sauce

2 Tbsp Teriyaki Sauce

2 Tbsp Mirin (Sweetened Sake)

1 Tbsp Sugar

2 Tsp Asian Sesame Oil

2 Tsp Sesame Seeds

1 Tbsp Ginger - Finely Minced

1 Red Pepper - Diced

1 Can of Sliced Water Chestnuts - Drained

1 Head of Bok Choy or Baby Bok Choy

5 Scallions - Diced

1 Tbsp Vegetable or Canola Oil

1 Cup of Jasmine Rice

Adapted from Week 14 Flyer of Alan's Orchard Fresh Box

Originally from One Perfect Bit

Start by making the soy ginger glaze for your grilled eggplant. In a small saucepan combine the soy sauce, teriyaki, mirin, sugar and minced ginger. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Simmer for 1 minute. Take off of the stove and cool completely. When it is cool you can stir in the Sesame Oil. Set aside.

Now it is time to prep all of your veggies. Wash your bok choy well, cut off the stems and cut each leaf into 3-4 pieces depending on its size. Slice your eggplant lengthwise about 1/4 inch thick for each piece. Dice your scallions and red pepper. If you are going to have the Jasmine rice, now is a good time to get a medium sized pot of water boiling on the stove. Cook the rice according to the package, mine took about 15 minutes to become light and fluffy. Heat a wok or your largest frying pan over high heat, add the vegetable oil. When the wok and oil are hot, add the bok choy and toss to coat stirring occasionally.

Prepare your outdoor grill to a medium heat and spray with some Pam for Grilling or grease your grill down with a little vegetable oil. Bring your sliced eggplant outside, as well as your glaze, a basting brush and tongs. Brush one side of the eggplant with the glaze and then place that side down on the grill, do this for each piece. If you have a cooking partner while you are grilling the eggplant they can monitor the rice and the stir frying veggies. If you don't you'll end up running back and forth from the grill into the kitchen like I did about a half a dozen times to try and have everything finish at the same time haha. Once the bok choy has cooked down you can add the red pepper, water chestnuts and most of the scallions to the wok, stir everything together and cover.

Grill the eggplant for 2-3 minutes on this side. When it is almost time to flip all of the eggplants brush the top side with the glaze then carefully flip them over using the tongs onto the other side. Allow them to cook another 2-3 minutes. Some of the thinner slices were soft with grill marks after about 5 minutes in total, other slices needed another flip and a few extra minutes so use your best judgement.

Once the eggplants are finished, take the off the of the grill and set aside. Your rice should be done by now and your stir fry veggies should only need maybe another minute or two of cooking time.

When everything is ready to go, put a heaping spoonful of rice in the bottom of a bowl, top with some of the stir fry veggies. Take two of the grilled eggplant slices and roll them up. Drizzle a Tbsp or two of the glaze over the whole bowl and top with the sesame seeds and scallions. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!! - Nicole

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