The Chinese eggplant is cooked until crispy and smoky using minimal oil, and then cooked in a rich savory garlic sauce. This vegan dish is very satisfying, both as a side or a main dish served over rice or noodles. {Gluten-Free Adaptable}
Eggplant is a very tricky vegetable to cook. If you don’t season it properly, it will taste bitter or extremely plain. If using too little oil, the texture will be mushy and create an awful mouthfeel. And if you use too much oil, the eggplant might turn soggy and greasy.
If you don’t like cooking eggplant at home, you probably have some of the worries below:
- Eggplant is quite time consuming to cook, compared to the average vegetable.
- You’ll end up eating more calories without getting an impressive flavor.
That is why I’m posting this Chinese eggplant recipe today, to help you to create a wonderful eggplant dish nearly effortlessly.
This recipe offers the simplest way to cook a great eggplant dish without using too much oil, and avoids soggy and plain eggplant with the minimum needed cooking time.
How to make the perfect eggplant dish
The secret to getting perfect Chinese style eggplant involves two things.
- You have to prepare the eggplant properly before cooking in order to get the right texture.
- You need to make a sauce that is flavorful enough.
To prepare the eggplant, there are two ways to do it.
Before introducing the first method, I want to thank my friend Steve S. He taught me this method quite a long time ago, to prevent the eggplant from absorbing oil.
The method is:
- Spread the sliced eggplant on a towel.
- Sprinkle Kosher salt on both surfaces of the sliced eggplant.
- Allow to rest for 15 minutes.
- Rinse the salt off the eggplant and pat each surface dry.
The second way is:
- Place the eggplant in a large bowl and add water to cover.
- Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, mix well.
- Place a pot lid on top to keep the eggplant under water for 15 minutes.
- Drain and pat dry
I personally prefer the second method. Because when soaking the eggplant in the water, it also preserve the white color of the eggplant and prevent it from oxidizing and turning brown.
Once you’ve finished either of the methods above, there is one more step – after the eggplant is completely dry, sprinkle cornstarch over it and mix by hand, until the eggplant is evenly coated with a thin layer of cornstarch.
Using this method, you can create crispy and nicely charred eggplant on the stovetop in 10 minutes. No need to turn on the oven to get the smoky flavor!
Garlic sauce ingredients
Creating a good sauce is really easy and you only need these ingredients:
- Light soy sauce
- Dark soy sauce: dark soy sauce add a beautiful dark brown color to the dish and a hint of caramel taste.
- Sugar: the sugar balance out the salty ingredients for a more roundup sauce.
- Cornstarch: the cornstarch acts as a thicker to thicken the sauce.
Just mix everything together and pour it over the eggplant at the end of cooking.
Mix en place
It’s important to have all of your ingredients prepped and ready before starting the stir fry. Your table should have:
- Eggplant, sliced, prepared according to either of the two methods listed above, and coated with cornstarch
- Mixed sauce
- Aromatics, chopped (ginger, garlic)
How to cook Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce
1. Pan frying the eggplant until golden on the surface, and the inside has turned tender. Transfer the eggplant to a plate. This step is crucial to keep the eggplant crispy.
2. Saute the aromatics.
3. Add back the eggplant and add the mixed sauce. The sauce will thicken up immediately. And the dish is done!
This recipe only uses enough sauce to coat the eggplant to keep the eggplant pieces crispy.
More delicious eggplant recipes
- Yu Xiang Eggplant (鱼香茄子, Sichuan Eggplant Stir Fry)
- Steamed Eggplant in Nutty Sauce
- Spicy Eggplant Salad (凉拌茄子)
- Di San Xian (Fried Potato, Eggplant and Pepper in Garlic Sauce 地三鲜)
- Grilled Eggplant with Yu Xiang Sauce (鱼香烤茄子)
Happy cooking and hope you enjoy the dish!
Chinese Eggplant with Garlic Sauce (红烧茄子)
Ingredients
- 10 oz (283 g) Chinese eggplant (about 2 small eggplant) , chopped to bite-size pieces (*Footnote 1)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Sauce (*footnote 2)
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce (*see footnote 3)
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Stir-fry
- 2 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 teaspoon ginger , minced
- 3 cloves garlic , chopped
Instructions
- (Option 1) Place eggplant in a large bowl and add water to cover. Add 1 teaspoon salt, mix well. Place a pot lid on top to keep the eggplant under water for 15 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
- (Option 2) Spread the sliced eggplant out on a paper towel. Sprinkle Kosher salt on both sides of the eggplant slices. Allow to rest for 15 minutes. Rinse with running tap water to wash off the salt, then pat dry thoroughly.
- Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl, mix well.
- Sprinkle eggplant with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and mix by hand, until eggplant is evenly coated with with a thin layer of cornstarch.
- Add 2 tablespoons oil to a big nonstick skillet and heat over medium high heat until hot. Spread eggplant across the bottom of the skillet without overlapping. Cook the eggplant one side at a time until all the surfaces are charred and the eggplant turns soft, 8 to 10 minutes in total. Transfer the eggplants to a plate. If the skillet gets too hot and starts to smoke, turn to medium heat.
- Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon oil, the ginger and garlic into the same skillet. Stir a few times until fragrant. Add all the eggplant back into the skillet. Mix the sauce again until cornstarch is fully dissolved and pour it over the eggplant. Immediately stir a few times, until the eggplant is evenly coated and the sauce thickens. Transfer everything to a big plate.
- Serve hot as a side or as main over steamed rice or noodles.
Notes
- You can use other type of eggplant and still generate crispy texture if following the method in this recipe. However, Asian long eggplant is the best option.
- This recipe uses very little sauce, just enough to coat the eggplant and make it tastes super flavorful. The rich sauce helps to keep the eggplant staying crispy. Be careful, the sauce will reduce very quickly once you add it to the pan. Stir immediately to coat the eggplant.
- The dark soy sauce will add color to the dish and make it look more appetizing. You can skip it if you don’t have any in your pantry.
Maggie, thanks for this delicious recipe! I did have one problem and I’m hoping you can help. I have the same problem every time I cook eggplant – I use too much oil and the eggplant turns out soggy and greasy. But, how can you cook so much eggplant in just 1 tablespoon of oil? As soon as the eggplant starts cooking, it soaks up all of the oil and I add more. What should I do when the eggplant soaks up the oil? If I don’t add more oil, will it still cook well? I did soak the eggplant for 15 minutes in salt water and I coated it with corn starch. However, I used regular eggplant (not the Chinese eggplant) and olive oil (instead of peanut oil). Not sure if this makes a difference in how the eggplant responds to the oil. Any tips you can give me is appreciated!
Hi Sharon, you are right, I do need more than 1 tablespoon oil to cook all the eggplant. In the past, I’ve used as little as 2 to 3 tablespoons oil in total with a nonstick pan and got a great result. I would use 1 tablespoon oil per batch when I cook them in batches, and add more when I cook a new batch. I wouldn’t add more oil immediately when the oil is soaked. I just keep grilling them in the hot pan until it’s cooked.
On the other hand, when I want the eggplant extra crispy (like fried), I do use a bit more cornstarch and oil.
And yes, I think the regular eggplant tends to soak more oil than the Chinese eggplant because it has a less dense texture.
Really love the whole soaking eggplant before cooking it works REALLY well and I now always cook eggplant this way!
Thank you for the recipe. This is one of my favorite Chinese dishes. I have shared it with friends.
Thanks for writing such clear & easy directions. It was fast and delicious.
Confused about the 1/2 Tablespoon of oil listed in the ingredients vs. the 1/2 teaspoon listed in step #7. Also, I only have regular soy sauce, not light. Hope it won’t make a huge difference as I’m getting to make it now.
This recipe was so easy and delicious! We added hot chili oil. Thanks so much 🙂
Made the dish with local aubergine. Fantastic. Nothing left.
Absolutely brilliant – have done it twice. Second time with fresh chilli – Devine.
This recipe is amazing! Honestly, I was going to give up on cooking eggplants if this recipe didn’t work. Now that I know how to make this, I will be making it again and again. Thank you for this delicious recipe, can’t wait to try out your other recipes!!
I love, love, love your blog! You are doing wonders for promoting Chinese culture. 🌹 I’ve just made this dish . Doing my rice and lunch is ready to eat. Chinese way prepared eggplant is better than meat. ♥
Loved it and it’s very easy! Thank you!
Absolutely delicious I followed the recipe exactly except I used regular eggplant. So delicious that my family and I could not stop eating it until it was all gone. Finally the mystery of preparing eggplant has been explained. I used method #2 and it worked amazingly. Thank you for a recipe that has now become one of our family’s favorite.
Chinese food is my favorite and egg plant Chinese style is on top. I got addicted to Chinese growing up in Hong Kong.. The only thing I don’t like is the corn starch and the sugar. Maybe one day you can create a recipe without those two ingredients. However this recipe is nicely done. Egg plants are a pain to cook so this is really appreciated.. The photos with step by step instructions are brilliant. Thank you.
Perfect recipe thank you so much
hi
the recepi is very delicious. i need to know can we add lemon at the serving time
We don’t usually serve the dish with lemon in China but why not! I think it will work nicely.
This was the first time I made Chinese eggplant successfully! Thank you for the wonderful sauce, which was quick, easy, and delicious. I like a little spice in my eggplant, so next time I will add some chili pepper and Taiwanese basil.
This was an excellent recipe and turned out great! Thank you so much!
I’ve been trying to replicate an eggplant dish I had for a little while and this is it. It was easy to cook and came out delicious! I doubled the sauce recipe and added shrimp before adding the cooked eggplant. Will definitely cook again.
I mad this dish today and it was delicious. I love eggplants. Because of your good description it was easy to make and all worked out very well. So, so good. I’ll make it again next week, that’s for sure. Thanks for sharing.
This was amazing! I’m hooked. I’ve stayed up past my bedtime browsing your recipes, tips, etc. Can’t wait to try the next recipe. 🙂
i am stunned!! this was so so good, the aubergine preparation makes it so crispy and moist