This quick Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce is a very easy and tasty Asian-style eggplant dish that can be prepared in just 35 minutes. The combination of stir-fried eggplants in a flavorful garlic sauce is something every Asian food lover must try.
This eggplant in garlic sauce also known as Chinese garlic eggplant is my favorite Asian stir-fry recipe.
I tried this dish for the first time a few years back in Vietnam. There it was served to us almost every single day at least once because of the limited meat-free options available in the Vietnamese cuisine.
Generally, eggplant dishes need a lot of oil as eggplants absorb oil. However, this Chinese eggplant recipe needs just 2 tablespoons of oil.
The recipe is very simple, you just need to sautee eggplants, make a spicy garlic sauce, mix the two, and then garnish with a few Asian toppings. But the final dish is so good that we didn't get bored of it even after having it once daily for around 2 weeks continuously in Vietnam.
Another two vegan dishes on which we survived in Vietnam are tofu in tomato sauce and Vietnamese morning glory.
All these dishes are now regularly cooked in my kitchen. This is one of my favorite parts of traveling, bringing the local cuisine from different countries to my kitchen.
Jump to:
- What goes in Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce?
- Ingredient notes and substitute suggestions
- How to make (step by step instructions)?
- Serving Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce
- Storing and reheating tips
- Recipe tips, tricks, and variation suggestions
- Frequently asked questions
- More eggplant recipes from around the world
- More vegan stir-fry recipes
- Recipe
What goes in Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce?
To make this Asian style garlic eggplant, you will need the ingredients shown below:
Ingredient notes and substitute suggestions
- Eggplant: Preferably, Chinese or Japanese eggplants that are long in shape and have fewer seeds. However, if you don't have them use any regular eggplant variety that's available to you, just make sure that they have less seeds.
- Chili: I have used red Thai chili pepper. You can use any type of hot chili. If your heat tolerance is low either remove some seeds of the chili or skip adding it. You can also use red chili flakes, chili oil, chili paste, or any hot sauce to add heat.
- Scallion (green onion): Spring onion can be used too.
- Cornstarch: You can also use rice flour or potato starch instead of cornstarch.
- Brown sugar: I have used light brown sugar but palm sugar can also be used. It won't make the dish sweet but will balance all the flavors of the sauce. Maple syrup can also be used.
- Salt: As we are also using soy sauce which is very savory, add salt carefully and only if required.
- Vinegar: Use rice vinegar or white wine vinegar. You can also use lime juice instead of vinegar.
- Sesame oil: Sesame oil adds a delicious nutty flavor to the dish and is used in many Asian dishes. Skip it if you don't have it but it makes the dish taste better.
- Roasted peanuts: Roasted cashew nuts can also be used in this recipe.
How to make (step by step instructions)?
To make this easy garlic eggplant recipe, just follow the step by step instructions given below:
Step 1: Cut eggplants into bite-size pieces.
Step 2: Mix salt and water in a large bowl.
Step 3: Put chopped eggplant pieces in the salted water.
Step 4: Place a small heavy plate on top of the eggplant cubes so that instead of floating on the surface they remain submerged in water.
Step 5: Leave them like this for around 15 minutes and then drain the water.
Step 6: Pat dry with a paper towel to get rid of excess moisture.
Steps 7 and 8: Put the eggplant cubes in a large bowl and add around 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
Steps 9 and 10: Gently toss until the cornstarch evenly coats the eggplant pieces.
Step 11: Heat vegetable or peanut oil in a large nonstick pan with a flat base. Spread the eggplant cubes in a single layer on it.
Step 12: Nicely cook from all sides until they turn golden brown. It will take around 15 minutes.
Step 13: In the same pan add chopped ginger, garlic, and hot red chilies and saute for about a minute.
Steps 14 and 15: In a small bowl mix soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, brown sugar, and cornstarch.
Step 16: Add the sauce mixture to the pan.
Steps 17 and 18: Keep stirring until the sauce thickens.
Step 19: Add stir-fried eggplant and some chopped scallion to the sauce.
Steps 20 and 21: Gently mix until the sauce evenly coats the eggplant pieces.
Steps 22, 23, and 24: Garnish with the remaining chopped green onions, hot red chili peppers, roasted peanuts, and sesame seeds.
Your delicious Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce is ready to be served!
Serving Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce
In Vietnam, we were always served this garlic eggplant stir fry with jasmine rice on the side. You can also have it with sticky rice, regular white rice, or brown rice.
If you prefer noodles, enjoy it with a noodle dish.
Garlic eggplant can also be served as an appetizer with a simple soy sauce dip or any other Asian dipping sauce on the side.
Storing and reheating tips
To store, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for 3-4 days.
To reheat, microwave for around 2 minutes or until heated well, stirring once in between.
Otherwise, reheat on the stovetop. To do that heat around a teaspoon of oil in a pan and quickly stir-fry the garlic eggplant again for around 2-3 minutes. You may add a splash of water if the eggplant cubes start sticking to the pan before getting reheated properly.
Recipe tips, tricks, and variation suggestions
- Pick eggplants with fewer seeds to make this Asian eggplant stir fry.
- Use a large nonstick skillet or pan with a flat base to make this recipe.
- While stir-frying, spread the eggplant pieces in a single layer so that they get cooked evenly.
- Always stir fry on medium-high heat.
- As the cooking is done on high heat, keep all the ingredients ready and near the stove.
- Handle the tender eggplant pieces gently otherwise, they will break. Also, use chopsticks or a pair of tongs to move them in the pan.
- Eggplants absorb a lot of oil, so don't add too much oil to stir-fry them. They will soak it all.
- Add salt only if the saltiness of soy sauce is not sufficient for you in the dish.
- For a hotter version, you may add some hot sauce, chili oil, chili paste, or red pepper flakes to the sauce.
- For extra flavor, vegan or vegetarian oyster sauce can also be added to the dish.
- To get a stronger garlic flavor, add some garlic powder to the sauce mixture.
Frequently asked questions
Chinese or Japanese eggplants are the best for this recipe. However, if you cannot find them, use any other variety with soft skin and fewer seeds.
The only ingredient that is not suitable for a gluten-free diet in this dish is soy sauce. So to make a gluten-free version, replace soy sauce with tamari.
There are a lot of reasons for soaking eggplant in salted water. First, it helps in getting rid of the bitterness of Chinese eggplant, if any.
It also helps in getting rid of the excess water content of the eggplant which helps it to retain its shape on getting stir-fried.
This step also helps in avoiding eggplant soaking excess oil.
More eggplant recipes from around the world
If you enjoyed this delicious Chinese eggplant recipe and looking for more easy eggplant recipes from around the world, don't miss checking out the following recipes that must be tried by every eggplant lover:
- Eggplant pasta
- Aloo baingan (curried eggplant with potatoes)
- Armenian eggplant salad
- Baba Ganoush
- Baingan ka bharta
More vegan stir-fry recipes
Looking for more easy vegan stir fry recipes? The following links are worth trying:
- Broccoli in garlic sauce
- Lemongrass tofu
- Tofu broccoli in peanut sauce
- Sweet and sour tofu
- Thai mushrooms
- Chili garlic tofu
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Recipe
Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce
Equipment
- 1 large skillet preferably nonstick
- 1 large bowl
- 1 heavy small plate
- Knife and chopping board
- Spatula
Ingredients
Ingredients for the sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Other ingredients
- 4-5 large Chinese or Japanese eggplants around 5 cups chopped eggplant
- 4-5 garlic cloves finely chopped (adjust to taste)
- 1 inch ginger piece finely chopped
- 1 Thai or any hot chili pepper finely chopped
- 2 stalks scallion finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons salt for soaking eggplant plus a little salt for the sauce
- Water to soak eggplants
Ingredients for garnishing
- 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
- ½ tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds
- Chopped scallion
Instructions
- Wash the eggplants and cut into bite size cubes.
- Mix salt and water in a large bowl. Add eggplant cubes. Put a small plate on top of the eggplants to make sure they remain submerged in the water. Keep them like this for around 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, discard the water and pat dry the eggplants with a clean kitchen towel.
- Put the eggplant cubes in a large bowl and add around 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Gently toss until the cornstarch evenly coats the eggplant pieces.
- Heat oil in a large nonstick pan with a flat base. Spread the eggplant cubes in a single layer on it. Nicely cook from all sides until they turn golden brown. It will take around 15 minutes.
- Take out the cooked eggplant pieces on a plate.
- In a bowl, mix all the sauce ingredients and keep the mixture aside.
- In the same pan add chopped ginger, garlic, and hot red chilies. Saute for about a minute.
- Add the sauce mixture to the pan. Continuously stir and cook until the cornstarch thickens.
- Add cooked eggplants and some chopped scallions. Mix everything and cook for another minute.
- Garnish with roasted peanuts, sesame seeds, and remaining chopped scallion. Enjoy with rice or noodles.
Video
Notes
- Pick eggplants with fewer seeds to make this Asian eggplant stir fry.
- Use a large nonstick skillet or pan with a flat base to make this recipe so that you can spread the eggplant cubes in a single layer.
- Always stir fry on medium-high heat.
- As the cooking is done on high heat, keep all the ingredients ready and near the stove.
- Handle the tender eggplant pieces gently otherwise, they will break. Also, use chopsticks or a pair of tongs to move them in the pan.
- While stir-frying, spread the eggplant pieces in a single layer so that they get cooked evenly.
- Eggplants absorb a lot of oil, so don't add too much oil to stir-fry them. They will soak it all.
- Add salt, only if the saltiness of soy sauce is not sufficient for you in the dish.
- For a hotter version, you may add some hot sauce, chili oil, chili paste, or red pepper flakes to the sauce.
- For extra flavor, vegan or vegetarian oyster sauce can also be added to the dish.
- To get a stronger garlic flavor, add some garlic powder to the sauce mixture.
- More recipe tips, tricks, and variation suggestions are shared in the post above, please follow them to make this recipe.
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