I am not a big vegetable-eater but I go gaga over grilled vegetables like eggplant, etc. So in particular, I love this recipe because it combines the basic elements (atleast for me) to make a dish taste delicious.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds Chinese or Japanese eggplant, cut diagonally in 1/2-inch slices

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon canola or peanut oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1 to 3 jalapeno or serrano chilies, minced

For the sauce:

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon honey or sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Procedure:

1. In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, rice wine, rice vinegar, honey, and cornstarch. Set aside.

2. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread the coals out evenly. Bush the eggplant slices with the sesame oil and grill over medium heat until they have softened and the purple color is gone, turning half-way through. Remove to a plate.

3. Remove the cooking grate and place your wok directly on top of the coals. Swirl in the canola or peanut oil. If the wok is hot enough, the oil should move quickly around the wok. Add the garlic, ginger, scallions, and chilies. Stir for 10 seconds, until brown and fragrant. Add the eggplant and stir for 1 minute. Stir the sauce and add it to the wok. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until sauce thickens. Remove to a bowl and serve hot or cold.

Before doing this, make sure the coals are warm enough so your eggplants won’t stick to the grill. Also for me, I prefer using the manual style of grilling instead of electric grills because it tastes better with the black grill lines on it. The combination of soy sauce and honey makes for a salty sweet dressing for the salad that I’m sure everyone will enjoy.