I’m a big fan of Japanese food. About a year I studied Japanese cuisine with a real Japanese chef. Japanese looks very simple, but at the same time has many incredible umami ingredients and secrets that works like a real magic. I like that simplicity and elegance at the same time, a healthy approach and smaller portions.
Sometimes I just play with the Japanese food ingredients, try to get a new combination. Eggplant, miso, and tahini is an amazing combination. This is my favorite vegan dish for cold lazy days. Usually, I serve it as an appetizer or as a part of the macrobiotic bowl.
I was surprised to find out that the eggplant is a real superfood. Helen Nichols has recently written a very interesting article about all Science-Based Health Benefits of Eggplant, 27 in total! After reading this article I want to eat a dish with eggplant every single day.
By the way, miso paste is extremely rich of protein that makes this dish nutritious. Tahini paste is a great source of calcium – 426 mg per 100g!
Ingredients
Serves 2- 350 g Eggplants, cut on a diagonal into 2cm thick slices
- 1,5-2 Tbs White miso (Shiro Miso)
- 2 Tbs Olive oil (or canola oil)
For sauce:
- 3 Tbs Tahini paste
- 1 Garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tsp Lemon juice
- 1 tsp Rice vinegar
- 1 tsp Apple syrup (or maple syrup)
- 3 Tbs Lukewarm water
- Sea salt
For serves:
- 1 Tbs toasted sesame seeds (white and black)
- 3 Tbs thinly sliced scallions
Directions
Preheat the oven to 200C.
Brush both sides of eggplant slices with oil and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Smear top of eggplant slices with a thin layer of miso paste. Roast about 20 minutes or until the eggplant is slightly browned.
For tahini sauce. Combine all ingredients in the bowl and mix well using whisker. If the mixture is too thick, slowly add more water until it reaches the preferred consistency.
Remove the eggplant from the oven, transfer to a serving plate, drizzle with tahini sauce, scatter with scallions and toasted sesame seeds, and serve.
Enjoy!
Cooking tips:
- For toasted sesame seeds use a wide frying pan and stovetop. Heat the sesame seeds on medium heat, shaking the pan occasionally. Remove the seeds when they slightly darken and become fragrant. It takes me between 3 and 5 minutes.
- Miso paste amount can vary depending on your preference. Avoid putting too much, the dish can be too salty.
- Try apple syrup. This is my new favorite sweetener for sauces and salad dressings. Mild sweet with light sour notes. I use Chantal brand. Apple Syrup is New Zealand’s answer to Maple Syrup. Made from juicy, organic New Zealand apples, it possesses its own unique flavour that is excellent on pancakes, waffles, and bacon. A natural alternative to refined sugar our apple syrup contains only pure apple juice, so it’s bursting with flavour and Organic goodness.
- If you like, you can salt and rinse the eggplants first, but it’s not really necessary as the bitterness in the eggplant works well with the sweet miso.
