Spicy Sweet-&-Sour Eggplant

Name: Spicy Sweet-&-Sour Eggplant (Nasu no Agebitashi)
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: ¼ cup mirin; ¼ cup soy sauce; 1 teaspoon minced garlic; 1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger; 1 teaspoon chili bean paste; About 1 tablespoon sugar; ¼ cup rice vinegar; 8 Japanese or Chinese eggplants, about 2 pounds total weight, trimmed and cut crosswise into 2-inch-thick rounds; Canola or other neutral oil for deep-frying; 3 tablespoons minced green onion, including tender green tops, for garnish

Nasu no Agebitashi

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Let's Cook Japanese Food!

By Amy Kaneko

Published 2017

About

This addictive dish is a very popular otsumami (appetizer), and my sister-in-law Emiko is the creator of this version. If you have trouble locating chili bean paste, you can use any Asian chili paste that you like. If you can find only American or Italian globe eggplants, you can still make the recipe.

Ingredients

For the Sauce

1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
¼

Asia
Japan
Starter
Side dish
Vegan
Spicy

Method

To make the sauce, in a small saucepan over low heat, stir together the garlic, ginger, mirin, soy sauce, vinegar, bean paste, and sugar. (I prefer a small amount of sugar, but add more if you like more sweetness.) Cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
In a wok or deep, wide saucepan, pour