ramyaramesh3007This braised eggplant with vegan minced meat is a delicious and comforting stir fry dish that pairs very well over noodles or rice.
The braised eggplant with minced pork is one of the most comforting meals I have on days I’m craving something simple yet nutritious. This is one of my favourite ways to make eggplant because it uses pantry staple ingredients and can be made in under 40 minutes (or even quicker if you have everything prepped!)
This trick here is to prevent the eggplant from becoming mushy or take too long to cook – the best way is to soak the eggplants in salted water and let it sit to draw out as much moisture as possible. This helps to quicken the cooking process and make the eggplants have a melt-in-your-mouth texture.
Ingredients You Need
- eggplants – medium sized eggplants of any variety works for this recipe
- protein – you can use minced vegan pork (eg omni mince or impossible meat), textured vegetable protein (TVP) or even crumbled tofu (fried)
- sesame oil – needed for the aroma!
- aromatics – garlic, ginger, spring onions
- seasonings – hot bean paste, shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, vegan oyster sauce
- sauce – corn starch to thicken
Gluten free substitutions: Omit dark soy sauce and replace with gluten free soy sauce. Omit hot bean paste and replace with gluten free sambal. Replace vegan oyster sauce with 2 tsp mushroom powder.
Allium free substitutions: Substitute garlic with asafoetida.
Vegan Braised Eggplant with Minced Meat
Ingredients
- 2 medium eggplants
- 2/3 cup minced vegan pork / textured vegetable protein (TVP)
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1.5 tbsp hot bean paste
- 1 tbsp shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp vegan oyster sauce
- 1/2 tbsp corn starch
- 1 cup water
Garnish
- 2 tbsp chopped spring onions
- 1 sliced red chili
Instructions
- Cut the eggplants into long pieces. Add them to salted water and let them sit for about 10 minutes to draw out moisture and bitterness, then rinse and pat dry.
- Heat 2 tablespoon of oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic and ginger, stirring until fragrant for about a minute.
- Add hot bean paste and saute. Add the minced meat and cook until browned.
- Add the eggplant pieces to the pan. Sauté until they begin to soften and are lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes).
- Add the soy sauces, vegan oyster sauce, hot bean paste, and shao xing wine.
- Add 3/4 cup water to the pan to create a bit of sauce. Cover and simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the eggplant is fully cooked and tender.
- Mix 1/2 tbsp corn starch with 1/4 cup water to make corn starch slurry. Mix in to the sauce.
- Garnish with sliced green onions, red chilies and serve hot over rice.