Thai Eggplant Salad
Eggplant is the girl who doesn’t give it up on the first date. She needs to be salted, dried, seasoned and cooked all the way through. This herbaceous Roasted Thai Eggplant Salad is the perfect dish to bring home to your mom. She’s healthy, layered, indulgent and impressive. That unctuous dressing has so much umami flavor that will keep you guessing what it is about her that you just can’t get enough of. She’s got looks AND personality AND it could be your lunch or tomorrow if you get the courage to swipe right on eggplant on your next Instacart delivery.
STEP BY STEP PICTURES:
Thai Eggplant Salad
Prep time: 30 MCook time: 30 MTotal time: 60 M
4
Ingredients:
Eggplant
- 5 japanese eggplants
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Dressing:
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 ½ tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- 1 clove garlic, grated on a microplane
- A few shakes of red chili flakes
Garnish: optional, but encouraged
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 packet Soy Sauce flavored Ramen, noodles smashed to pieces
- ¼ cup chopped roasted & salted peanuts (any nut will work!)
Salad:
- 1 cup of your favorite lettuce: butter, field, arugula, baby gem
- A handful of fresh cilantro, (about ¼ cup) roughly chopped
- A handful of fresh mint, (about ¼ cup) leaves picked and roughly chopped
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 400°F convection, or 425°F if your oven only has the regular bake function.
Eggplant:
- Slice the head off the eggplant and cut each one in half lengthwise. Salt the surfaces with kosher salt and let sit for 30 minutes while you make the dressing and prep the garnishes. After 30 minutes, sing a paper towel, wipe the condensation off of the eggplant and cut into 1” slices on the bias. This just means: make your cuts on an angle instead of straight on, but it’s still going to be delicious any way you slice it.
- Pour olive oil directly onto the sheet tray and rub all over to make sure the surface is fully greased. Place eggplant on the sheet tray and toss well so that all sides are well coated. If you are using the convection setting, you can place all the eggplant onto one sheet tray and roast. If you are using the regular bake setting, you will have to divide the eggplant onto TWO sheet trays and bake one at a time to avoid steaming instead of browning.
- Place in the oven and roast for 25 minutes, or until soft and well browned.
Dressing:
- Place sugar and water in a small saucepan and turn on medium heat. Stir constantly, until all the sugar granules have dissolved into the water. Remove from heat. While that cools, place the rest of the ingredients in a mason jar. Add the sugar water and shake to combine. Reserve until needed.
Garnish:
- Melt butter in a small saute pan over medium heat. Add smashed ramen and cook, stirring occasionally, until ramen is evenly browned. Add flavor packet and toss to coat. Turn off heat and add chopped peanuts. Reserve until needed.
Salad:
- Remove the eggplant from the oven and immediately toss with about 2 tablespoons of the dressing directly on the pan. Add the lettuce, shallots and fresh herbs and toss well with the eggplant. TASTE before adding any more dressing. Use it sparingly, perhaps that’s all you need!
- Garnish generously with crunchy ramen and peanuts before serving.
Equipment:
Small saucepan
Mason jar
Large sheet tray