[Chinese Recipes] Stuffed Eggplant

Chinese stuffed eggplant is a popular dim sum dish that also makes a great lunch or dinner meal when served with rice. What I like most about this dish is that it uses less oil than most Asian eggplant recipes, but is still very satisfying.

Steaming the eggplant is the key. It makes for a very soft texture that’s held up by the shrimp and pork filling. Top it all with a flavorful sauce, and you have a restaurant quality dish. The pork in the stuffing is optional. It can be substituted with more shrimp or any other ground meat. You can also leave the stuffing out all together. If you just steam the eggplant slices and use a vegetable stock to make the sauce, you’d have a great vegan meal.

The personal adjustments you can make for your own tastes or for any dietary restrictions is always the beauty of a home cooked meal. We’ve had this Chinese stuffed eggplant many times at weekend dim sum brunches, and I don’t know why I don’t cook it more often at home! Let’s get started.

For the eggplant:
6 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 oz. ground pork (optional; can also be substituted with ground chicken, beef, or turkey)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus 3 tablespoons (divided)
1 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
1 egg
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 scallions, finely chopped (divide half for the filling and half for the sauce/garnish)
4 medium Chinese/Japanese purple eggplants

For the sauce:
1 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon soy sauce
A pinch of sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed into a slurry with 2 tablespoons water
salt, to taste
white pepper, to taste

Start by making the filling for the eggplant. Place the shrimp in a food processor along with the ground pork, salt, sugar, white pepper, sesame oil, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, and rice wine. Process until a rough paste forms. Transfer to a bowl.

Stir in the egg, cornstarch, and half of the chopped scallions. Set the mixture aside in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Cut each eggplant into 1 1/2-inches thick slices on the diagonal. Take each slice and carefully slice through the middle, but don’t cut all the way through. The pieces should still be attached on one side. This will help keep both halves of the eggplant together.

Fill the middle of each eggplant slice with the shrimp and pork filling.

Once all the slices are stuffed, heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, and fry the slices on both sides until golden. Add a little more oil whenever the pan starts to look a little dry (you’ll only need a tablespoon at a time). You can also brush the oil onto the eggplant pieces.

Remove from the pan and place on a heatproof plate for steaming.

Prepare your steamer with 2-3 cups water (you can also use a wok with a steaming rack placed in the bottom). Heat until the water is simmering. Turn off the heat, carefully place the plate in the steamer. Cover the steamer and turn the heat back on to medium-high. Steam for 7-10 minutes. The eggplant should be very soft. Nothing worse than an under-cooked eggplant!

While the eggplant is steaming, make the sauce. Heat a saucepan over medium heat, and add 1 teaspoon oil, sesame oil, and minced garlic. Cook for 30 seconds, and then add the chicken stock, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring the sauce to a simmer, and stir in half of the cornstarch slurry. Cook for a minute to thicken. Set aside.

After the stuffed eggplant is done steaming, pour any liquid left on the plate into the sauce. Heat the sauce and add more cornstarch slurry if it needs thickening. Stir in your reserved scallions, pour over the eggplant, and serve.

Chinese Stuffed Eggplant

Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

For the eggplant:

6 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 oz. ground pork (optional; can also be substituted with ground chicken, beef, or turkey)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus 3 tablespoons (divided)
1 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
1 egg
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 scallions, finely chopped (divide half for the filling and half for the sauce/garnish)
4 medium Chinese/Japanese purple eggplants

For the sauce:

1 teaspoon oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon soy sauce
A pinch of sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed into a slurry with 2 tablespoons water
salt, to taste
white pepper, to taste

Instruction:

Start by making the filling for the eggplant. Place the shrimp in a food processor along with the ground pork, salt, sugar, white pepper, sesame oil, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, and rice wine. Process until a rough paste forms. Transfer to a bowl, and stir in the egg, cornstarch, and half of the chopped scallions. Set the mixture aside in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Cut each eggplant into 1 1/2-inches thick slices on the diagonal. Take each slice and carefully slice through the middle, but don’t cut all the way through. The pieces should still be attached on one side. This will help keep both halves of the eggplant together.

Fill the middle of each eggplant slice with the shrimp and pork filling. Once all the slices are stuffed, heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, and fry the slices on both sides until golden. Add a little more oil whenever the pan starts to look a little dry (you’ll only need a tablespoon at a time).

Remove from the pan and place on a heatproof plate for steaming. Prepare your steamer with 2-3 cups water (you can also use a wok with a steaming rack placed in the bottom). Heat until the water is simmering. Turn off the heat, carefully place the plate in the steamer. Cover the steamer and turn the heat back on to medium-high. Steam for 7-10 minutes. The eggplant should be very soft. Nothing worse than an under-cooked eggplant!

While the eggplant is steaming, make the sauce. Heat a saucepan over medium heat, and add 1 teaspoon oil, sesame oil, and minced garlic. Cook for 30 seconds, and then add the chicken stock, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring the sauce to a simmer, and stir in half of the cornstarch slurry. Cook for a minute to thicken. Set aside.

After the eggplant is done, pour any liquid left on the plate into the sauce. Heat the sauce and add more cornstarch slurry if it needs thickening. Stir in your reserved scallions, pour over the eggplant, and serve.

This recipe and image sources are referred in website: Thewoksoflife.com. Thanks so much!