Eggplant is delicious on the grill, and this recipe makes it even better with the use of a Thai-inspired marinade. Grilling is an age-old tradition in Thailand, with amazing marinade concoctions that make for taste-inspiring meals -- and this eggplant is no exception. Eggplant is a "meaty" vegetable; that is, it makes a great meat substitute and vegetarian Thai chefs love to use it in their cooking. You'll enjoy its sweet-spicy flavor -- makes a superb side dish to any meal you might be cooking.
Ingredients
-
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
-
3 teaspoons brown sugar
-
2 garlic cloves, minced
-
1 red chili, fresh, minced, or 1/4 teaspoon or more crushed chili flakes, to taste
-
1 eggplant, small or the equivalent of 2 cups stacked slices
-
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
Steps to Make It
-
Gather the ingredients.
-
Stir together the hoisin sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and chili.
-
Slice up the eggplant into 1/4 inch-thick rounds and set in a bowl.
-
Slather the marinade over and toss well to coat.
-
Warm up your grill and brush with the oil.
-
Set marinated eggplant over a hot grill. When nice grill marks appear, flip them and brush tops with any leftover marinade. Keep grilling until eggplant is soft when pierced with a fork.
-
Serve hot from the grill as is, or dress it up with a little fresh basil, either as a side dish or the star player (see tips below for how to make this into a complete vegetarian/vegan meal).
Tips
To make this dish your main course:
- Double the marinade (hoisin, brown sugar, garlic, and chili) and add wedges of medium-firm to firm tofu sliced 1/4-inch.
- Toss eggplant and tofu together in the marinade. Allow a little longer time to marinate (20 minutes) or leave in the refrigerator to marinate longer, up to 1 hour.
- Grill and serve with Thai jasmine rice for a complete meal. Note that Thai sticky rice is also wonderful with this meal.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
---|---|
77 | Calories |
2g | Fat |
14g | Carbs |
1g | Protein |
Nutrition Facts | |
---|---|
Servings: 3 to 4 | |
Amount per serving | |
Calories | 77 |
% Daily Value* | |
Total Fat 2g | 3% |
Saturated Fat 0g | 1% |
Cholesterol 0mg | 0% |
Sodium 196mg | 9% |
Total Carbohydrate 14g | 5% |
Dietary Fiber 2g | 7% |
Total Sugars 8g | |
Protein 1g | |
Vitamin C 17mg | 87% |
Calcium 16mg | 1% |
Iron 0mg | 3% |
Potassium 129mg | 3% |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. |
Recipe Tags: