Name: Chinese Eggplants with Minced Pork
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 long Asian eggplants; 1 tbsp. salt; 1/4 cup minced pork; 1 tsp. minced ginger; 1/2 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine; 3 tbsp. cooking oil ( ,divided); 2 garlic cloves ( ,sliced); 1 thumb ginger ( ,sliced); 2 green onions ( ,white half and green half divided); 1/2 tbsp. doubanjiang ( ,skip this if you prefer a mild taste or double for a hotter version); 1 tbsp. light soy sauce; 1/8 tsp. salt; 1/8 tsp. sugar; 1/2 tsp. sesame oil

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Chinese eggplants with minced pork （肉末烧茄子） and spicy garlic sauce is a humble and popular dish in Chinese kitchens. r A small amount of minced pork can significantly improve eggplants’ taste, enriching the layers of a humble eggplant stir-fry. For vegan readers, you can skip minced pork or try this eggplant with garlic sauce.

Braised eggplants are always my favorite method of making eggplants, using very basic seasonings and producing a well-balanced dish with a strong garlic aroma. There is another popular Chinese eggplant dish named “Yu Xiang Eggplants”, which is named “Chinese eggplants in spicy garlic sauce”. It has similar ingredients and cooking methods, but that’s a more complex version. If you love this flavor or love to cook eggplants, I highly recommend you try yuxiang eggplants too.

How to make the eggplants turn soft easily

Though eggplants can be extremely delicious, they are not liked by every housewife cook as they are hard to handle and need lots of oil. I have been trying to search for ways to reduce the oil absorbed by eggplants. The final solution is to soak the eggplants in slightly salty water and let them absorb the water as much as possible. The water contained in the eggplants can help to accelerate the cooking process and make the eggplants much softer.

eggplants with minced pork|chinasichuanfood.com

Eggplants are quite yummy when well cooked. The soft texture can greatly absorb the spicy garlic sauce and endow the dish with great flavor. The most common way of cooking eggplants in China includes

Ingredients Breakdown

doubanjiang is also named broad bean paste, a spicy chili sauce from Sichuan cuisine, made from broad beans. It has a lovely spicy flavor that combines well with most Chinese dishes. If you don’t have doubanjiang, you can use other chili paste to replace it.
Minced pork is used in a very small amount. We need to fry minced pork until crispy and aromatic. The aroma of the minced pork can improve the taste of the dish greatly even with a very small portion.
Garlic, ginger, and green onion create a basic savory base for braised eggplants.
Light soy sauce can provide a basic savory taste.

Instructions

Remove the ends of Asian eggplants and then cut them into small cubes (for the best flavor, try to cut each cube with some skin). Transfer them into a large pot filled with water, add a pinch of salt, and soak for 10 minutes. Add a weight if necessary to make sure the eggplants is well soaked. Set aside to drain completely.

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok and fry the eggplants for 6-9 minutes until the eggplants become soft and withered. Transfer the eggplants out and leave the oil in.

Add marinated pork to stir-fry until aromatic and slightly golden brown . Transfer to the edges of the wok and place the doubanjiang in to fry for another 1 minute. Slow down the fire.

Add garlic, ginger and scallion onion until aromatic,

Return the eggplants along with fried minced pork, soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Mix well. Serve with chopped green onion garnished.

What to serve with

This is a savory dish and you can match it with a light Chineses style soup like winter melon soup, lotus root soup, and even egg drop soup. Besides, I highly recommend matching it with Chinese cucumber salad and steamed rice.

Other eggplants recipe on this site

Eggplants are cooked widely in Chinese cuisine with many methods. We have lots of yummy eggplants recipes you can check.