The sweet memory of eating a dish with a loved one can be as enjoyable as the dish itself. Nicole Ho Kimoto of McCully remembers her grandfather Luis Tayag savoring a simple preparation of fried eggplant flavored with raw slices of garlic and soy sauce.
It’s an easy dish that makes a great entree or side with just three ingredients plus cooking oil. She uses tender Asian (long) eggplant rather than the round variety. Raw garlic slices used to garnish the eggplant add a kick to this dish.
“Slice the garlic as thin as you can,” she advises.
If you are not confident about your knife skills, you can mince the garlic or push it through a garlic press.
Topped with shoyu, the dish is perfect with hot steamed rice, just the way Kimoto says her grandfather used to enjoy it.
LUIS TAYAG’S FRIED EGGPLANT WITH RAW GARLIC
- 1 long (Asian) eggplant
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 10 garlic cloves, peeled
- 3 tablespoons shoyu
Slice eggplant at a slight diagonal into 1/4-inch slices. Finely slice or mince garlic and set aside.
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium (oil should be about 1 inch deep).
Place eggplant slices into oil in batches and fry both sides until dark brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Keep checking for doneness; if eggplant overcooks, it turns black.
Remove cooked eggplant to plate or platter. Top with sliced garlic and drizzle with shoyu. Eat immediately with hot rice. Serves 2.
Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 250 calories, 18 g total fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, no cholesterol,1,400 mg sodium, 17 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber, 8 g sugar, 6 g protein.
”Easy Kine” features simple dishes that start with commercially prepared ingredients. Lynette Lo Tom is excited to hear your tried-and-true suggestions. Contact her at lynette@brightlightcookery.com or via Instagram at @brightlightcookery. Nutritional analysis by Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S.
