Spice and texture in harmony. Fragrant sauce, silky tofu cream and crispy eggplant come together in a sure-fire winner. Serve with Cloudy Bay Chardonnay to surprise and delight.
Serves 4 - 6
Doenjang sauce:
2 tablespoons doenjang paste (or use 2 tablespoons miso)
4 teaspoons gochujang paste
2 tablespoons runny honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
Ginger silken tofu cream:
300g silken tofu
1 small clove garlic
2 cm piece ginger, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Crispy eggplants:
2 eggplant, cut into bite-sized pieces
vegetable oil for deep frying
1½ teaspoons sea salt
100g cornflour
50g plain flour
2 tablespoons rice flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ - ¾ cup ice cold soda water
To serve:
toasted sesame seeds
1 spring onion, finely chopped
Whisk all the ingredients together in a saucepan with ½ cup water. Bring to a simmer and reduce until thickened and reduced by half. Set aside to cool.
Blitz all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Season with salt and set aside.
1) Heat the oil to 180°C (350 °F). Dip each piece of eggplant into the batter, drain off the excess, then fry for 5-6 minutes until golden. Drain onto a rack over a tray to drain and cool for 5 minutes.
2) Put the silken cream on a platter, top with the eggplant and drizzle over the sauce. Scatter over the sesame seeds and spring onion. Serve immediately.