This eggplant was absolutely succulent, with a melting texture. Yusuke cut the raw eggplant (regular large size) into one inch slices. He cut off the skin in stripes, leaving some in place.
In a pan, he made a bed of kombu seaweed and then added sake, enough to cover the eggplant. He covered the pan and let it steam for 10-15 minutes, flipping the pieces once during the process. Option: use white wine instead of sake and add ponzu.
While the eggplant was steaming, Yusuke prepared a sauce:
- 1-2 tbsp soy sauce
- salt
- sake
- dashi
- mirin
When the eggplant was soft, he added enoki mushrooms (whee) to the pan with the sauce. He finished by reducing the heat and adding katakuriko mixed with a bit of water (Japanese potato starch) to thicken the sauce.
To serve, we sprinkled a bit of shichimi pepper on top.
Chez Yusuke 