Warm Eggplant Salad With Sesame And Shallots Recipes

Steps:

• Fried Garlic: Place fine-mesh strainer over heatproof bowl and set aside. Pour oil into a shallow pan, ½-inch deep. Set pan over high heat until oil is lightly bubbling, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, place garlic cloves in a food processor and pulse to roughly chop. Add garlic to the oil and immediately turn heat to low. Cook 3-4 minutes, stirring the entire time to prevent garlic from burning.
• When garlic is light golden brown and the bubbling has slowed, turn off heat. Strain the garlic, reserving the flavorful oil in the bowl. Gently shake the strainer to remove as much oil as possible, then drain and cool the garlic on paper towels in an even layer. Garlic will crisp as it cools. Makes about ¼ cup fried garlic and ½ cup garlic oil. Storage: Fried garlic can be stored in a container, uncovered, at room temperature for up to 2 days. Alternatively, place into an airtight container with a silica gel packet (available online) to store for several weeks. Garlic oil can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.
• Fried Shallots: Place fine-mesh strainer over heatproof bowl and set aside. Pour oil into a shallow pan, ½-inch deep. Set pan over high heat until oil is lightly bubbling, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, slice the shallots by peeling, cutting in half, then thinly slicing with the grain into a julienne. When the oil is bubbling, turn heat to low, add the shallots, and stir. Don't rush the process with high heat: cook, stirring and scraping the sides occasionally, adjusting the heat to maintain a gentle sizzle, 5-10 minutes.
• When the oil stops bubbling and the shallots are starting to brown but still look raw, turn off heat. The residual heat will continue cooking the shallots. Continue stirring and flipping the shallots until they are a deep golden brown and crispy, another 1-2 minutes. Strain the shallots, reserving the flavorful oil in the bowl. Cool the shallots on paper towels in an even layer. Shallots will crisp as they cool. Makes about ¼ cup fried shallots and ½ cup shallot oil. Storage: Fried shallots can be stored in a container, uncovered, at room temperature for up to 2 days. Alternatively, place into an airtight container with a silica gel packet (available online) to keep fresh for several weeks. Shallot oil can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.
• Eggplants: Preheat charcoal grill according to grill directions to medium heat, about 30 minutes. Once the coals have begun to turn gray but are still flaming, place the eggplants directly on the coals. Cook, turning frequently, until the skin has almost completely blackened and the flesh is very soft, about 4 minutes; the goal is to fully char the skin before the flesh gets mushy. When they're ready, a knife should meet almost no resistance when the eggplant is poked. Alternatively, eggplants can be roasted over the burner of a stove: turn frequently until the skin has blistered and blackened.
• Salad: Julienne the shallot into long strips, thinly slice chiles into rings, and roughly chop boiled egg. Set aside. Meanwhile, remove charred eggplant from the grill or stove. Place in a shallow bowl and cover bowl with plastic wrap to steam the eggplants for easier removal of the charred skin, 5-10 minutes.
• Dressing: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add fish sauce, palm sugar simple syrup, lime juice, and sliced chiles. Heat the mixture just until it's warm to the touch, 15 seconds. Peel off and discard the skin of the eggplants. (It's fine to leave bits of charred skin; they will add to the smoky flavor of the dish.) Cut peeled eggplants into 1-inch pieces and place into the warm dressing. Stir gently, then stir in the julienned shallots.
• Assembly: Transfer eggplant mixture to a serving platter. Garnish with dried shrimp, chopped egg, fried garlic, fried shallot, and a few cilantro leaves. Serve.

Steps:

• Trim eggplants and cut in half if very long. Cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices. Sprinkle a little Italian seasoning and salt on both sides of each slice.
• Preheat a griddle or heavy pan over high heat. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil over eggplant slices and cook until slightly charred, about 30 seconds per side.
• Core bell pepper and cut into thin slices. Season with salt. Use the same griddle or pan to cook until slightly charred, about 30 seconds per side.
• Prepare dressing by mixing remaining olive oil, sugar, balsamic vinegar, and garlic in a small bowl. Stir in remaining Italian seasoning.
• Layer 1/2 of the eggplant slices on a plate. Dot with cream cheese. Cover with bell peppers and remaining cream cheese. Top with remaining eggplant. Drizzle dressing over the salad. Garnish with cilantro. Serve warm, mixing right before serving.

Steps:

• Trim eggplant, and cut into cubes of 1/2 to 1 inch. If using large eggplant, sprinkle with salt, put in a colander, and let sit at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour. Rinse.
• Boil large pot of water. Blanch eggplant in boiling water 2 minutes, no more. It will become just tender. Drain in colander as you would pasta.
• Toast sesame seeds in small dry skillet over medium heat, shaking frequently until they color slightly. Dry eggplant with paper towels. Combine remaining ingredients, and toss with eggplant and sesame seeds in bowl. Serve at room temperature, or refrigerate until ready to serve. Covered well, the salad will remain flavorful for a day.

Steps:

• Remove the tenderloins from the underside of the chicken breasts and reserve for another purpose. Trim breasts if necessary and flatten them slightly with a meat mallet. Season on both sides with salt and pepper and place in a shallow dish. Using a clean knife and cutting board, peel eggplant and cut into 1/2-inch slices, then season with salt and pepper. Place eggplant slices in a separate shallow dish.
• Prepare the marinade: stir together ginger, garlic, soy sauce, peanut oil, sesame oil, rice wine and chile paste in a small bowl. Pour half the marinade over chicken and remaining marinade over eggplant, turning over to coat well. Leave at room temperature for 30 minutes. (You may do this step up to 2 hours ahead and refrigerate. Return to room temperature before cooking.)
• Make the vinaigrette: whisk together rice vinegar, ginger, brown sugar, mustard, sesame oil, peanut oil, salt and lime juice. Set aside.
• Heat a stovetop grill pan over medium-high heat, or use a charcoal or gas grill. Grill eggplant slices until nicely browned and softened, about 3 minutes per side. Remove and hold at room temperature. Lay chicken breasts on the grill skin side down and let cook until nicely browned, about 5 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side until firm to the touch, about 2 minutes more. Remove breasts to a platter and let rest 5 minutes.
• Line a large platter with lettuce leaves. Cut chicken into 1/4-inch slices and arrange over lettuce. Arrange grilled eggplant around the platter. Lightly salt cucumbers and dress with 1 tablespoon vinaigrette, then scatter over salad. Spoon the rest of the vinaigrette evenly over salad. Top with scallions and cilantro, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Garnish with optional jalapeño slices and lime wedges and serve.

Steps:

• Whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, sugar, sesame or walnut oil, and canola oil. Add the optional ginger and/or garlic. Set aside.
• If you can find Japanese eggplant, cut them in half lengthwise. If using large globe eggplants, cut them lengthwise into quarters. Place in a steamer and steam 10 to 15 minutes, until thoroughly tender. Remove from the heat and cut in 3/4-inch wide slices. Season with salt. Toss gently with the dressing (it's okay if the eggplant falls apart a little) and half the chives while warm, and chill for 1 hour. Toss again and serve on a bed of baby arugula. Sprinkle the remaining chives over the top.

Steps:

• Place wok or skillet over high heat, when hot, add 2tbs oil and swirl to coat the pan.
• When hot but not smoking, about 1 minute, add eggplant, stir fry about 1 minute.
• Add water, or more as needed, and continue to stir-fry moving pan off and on the heat as necessary to prevent scorching, until water evaporates and eggplant is tender when pierced, about 5 minutes.
• Transfer to a bowl and let cool to room temperature.
• Mix all dressing ingredients in a bowl, whisk to blend. Pour over cooled eggplant and toss to coat well.
• To serve, mound on a serving plate and garnish with onions.