Sweet Chili Eggplants

5 from 8 votes

I love eggplants for their silky texture and have really been enjoying cooking a lot with eggplant these days. This Sweet Chili Eggplant is an easy stir-fry you can make and enjoy with rice or noodles of your choice. The sauce is a delicious balance of sweetness with a bit of spice that beautifully coats the eggplant pieces.

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian, Chinese, East Asian

Servings people

Calories 388 kcal

Ingredients

Eggplants

1 lb Chinese eggplants or other eggplant (I used 4 long Chinese eggplants)
Pinch salt
Neutral oil for cooking

Sauce

1 tbsp tomato ketchup
4 cloves garlic minced
2-3 tbsp sugar adjust to taste
1-2 tbsp chili sauce of choice , I used sriracha
1.5 tbsp soy sauce adjust to taste
1 tbsp Shaoxing wine or other rice wine, optional
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 cup room temperature water
1 tbsp corn starch

For serving

Sesame seeds
Spring onions chopped
Rice or noodles

Instructions

You can see the video for a complete step-by-step.
Sweet chili sauce: Mix everything. This sauce is easily customisable and you can just djust to your taste.
For the eggplants: I used long Chinese eggplants. I sliced these into short 2.53-inch (~7 to 7.5cm) pieces and then halved each piece. From there, I sliced diagonally into each piece to create this criss-cross patterns. I love slicing eggplant this way since I find the the sauce seeps through into the eggplant better. It also adds to the texture.
Place the eggplants in a bowl and add a generous pinch of salt. Mix well.
Cook the eggplant: Heat a large non stick pan or grill pan over medium. Add some oil. Once hot, add the eggplant, flesh-side down. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes or until grill marks start to shot or when eggplants start to become tender when touched/poked.
Flip over and cook the other side. Feel free to cook down the eggplant depending on whether you like it more on the overcooked side (very silky) or with a good bite. Do note that the eggplants will continue to cook in the sauce later on.
If cooking the eggplants in batches, remove the first batch from the pan and set aside first before cooking the next batch.
Add back in the eggplants (if cooking in batches) into the pan. Give the sauce another good mix since the starch can sit at the bottom.
Over medium heat, pour in the sauce and mix with the eggplants. Allow the sauce to thicken from the starch and coat the eggplant pieces. Cook down for longer if you want silky eggplants but I prefer mine with a little bit of a bite.
Serve and enjoy! Garnish with some sesame seeds and spring onions, if desired. Best enjoying with rice or noodles.

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NUTRITIONAL INFO

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