Chinese Eggplant

I count myself among the luckiest of people because throughout my life I’ve been surrounded by the most wonderful, uplifting friends. Moving abroad can propose some pretty formidable obstacles. There are times when it would be completely reasonable to just throw hands and the air and scream “does anyone here understand me?”

For reasons I can’t justify, I am extremely blessed to have a tightly knit group of friends/family here. My roommate Andi and I have shared some pretty amazing adventures—from traveling Poland bottom to top (accidentally) to sharing a bottle of Lambrusco in a paddleboat on the Vltava to miles and miles (and miles) of half marathon training—she is my copilot in the whole cooking in Czech adventure.

Some of our best work comes from her beautiful Chinese heritage. Here’s our favorite, Chinese Eggplant:

Ingredients:

2 long Chinese eggplants, cubed

 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

 1 tablespoon white sugar

 1 green chile pepper, chopped

 1 teaspoon cornstarch

 1/2 teaspoon chili oil, or to taste

 2 teaspoons salt

 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:

1) Place the eggplant cubes into a large bowl, and sprinkle with salt. Fill with enough water to cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Rinse well, and drain on paper towels.

2) In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, red wine vinegar, sugar, chile pepper, cornstarch and chili oil. Set the sauce aside.

3) Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Fry the eggplant until it is tender and begins to brown, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour in the sauce, and cook and stir until the sauce is thick and the eggplant is evenly coated. Serve immediately.