As another side dish to this evening's dinner that features the sesame seed, I tossed steamed eggplant with toasted hazelnuts.

Saturday as I made my tour of the local farmer's stands, filling the back seat of my car along the way, I noticed my favorite stand had small round eggplants. I've only cooked with the long varieties and wanted to see how it compared to the usual globe variety I purchase.  These eggplants (comparable in size to eight ball zucchini) were tender and less seedy. They would be excellent for stuffing or making Eggplant Parmesan.

Everyday Food features a small selection of recipes that feature eggplant in the current September issue.  I was inspired by their steamed eggplant with peanuts and scallions and decided to recreate it, removing the added sugar and oil.  I did not create a reduction.

Steamed Eggplant with Hazelnuts, Scallions and Sesame Seeds
Adapted from Everyday Food, September 2009.

3 small round eggplants, skins removed, cut lengthwise into 2-3" strips
3 T cider vinegar
2 1/2 T soy sauce (reduced sodium variety)
2 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped finely
1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped (once cooled I place them inside of a plastic bag and whack them with my rolling pin)
2 scallions, sliced
1 tsp+ sesame seeds, preferably toasted
Pepper to taste

Steam eggplant until tender, between 5-10 mins. Toss half way through to ensure even cooking. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, cider vinegar, and garlic. Remove eggplant from steamer and place in a serving dish. Pour dressing on top and toss together. Garnish with nuts and sesame seeds.


 


 

Every dish from tonight's dinner featured sesame seeds. A seaweed salad with edamame, sesame flatbread crackers, and steamed eggplant topped with, you guessed it, sesame seeds. Read Sesame Seeds Parts 2 & 3 to find the recipes for those dishes.

My favorite side dish when I eat at Asian restaurants is seaweed salad.  After scouring the web I learned that sea vegetables are just as versatile as the grains, beans, and vegetables I've been using to make various salads. I've been meaning to incorporate sea vegetables into my cooking vocabulary, as they are high in protein, fiber, and various minerals. Here, I rehydrated Arame and Hijiki, and combined it with edamame, cucumber, red pepper, shallots in a soy and vinegar dressing.

Seaweed Salad

1/3 c Arame
1/3 c Hijiki
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 c shelled edamame, cooked
1 cucumber, seeded, peeled and chopped thin (next time I will dice it instead)
1 shallot, minced
1 T+ toasted sesame seeds
2 scallions, white and green parts, chopped
1 1/2 T freshly grated ginger (add more to taste)
1 T Mirin
2 T soy sauce (I prefer reduced sodium soy sauce)
2 T  rice vinegar
1 T sesame oil (or substitute olive or almond oil)
pinch of cayenne (add more to taste)

Place arame and hijiki into a small saucepan of boiling water. Boil 10-15mins until tender but not soft. Meanwhile, prepare edamame, boiling pods or beans, shell if necessary. Place arame, hijiki, and edamame together in a large bowl. Add cucumber, pepper, and shallots. Make your dressing in a separate small bowl. Whisk together ginger, soy sauce, rice vinegar, oil, mirin and cayenne together. Pour on top of salad mixture. Toss together with sesame seeds. Top with scallions.

Serve cold or at room temperature. Serves 4 to 6.

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