Well, I had leftover eggplant, and I haven’t really ventured into the world of Filipino cuisine, so I thought I’d give an easy intro dish a try. It’s literally a cooked eggplant with aromatic eggs cooked around it - suuuuuuuuper easy to make, it took about 15 minutes total. The key, I found, is to really to burn the hell out of the outside of the eggplant, and then obviously to add way more garlic and green onion than most recipes call for. The smokiness from the char on the eggplant gives the dish rotisserie chicken or backyard BBQ vibes, but adding the eggs and aromats, not to mention serving it over rice, gives it a distinctly Asian flare.
Eggs cooked in this way are of course not the most common sight in places like China, Japan, or Korea, but Southeast Asia and Oceanea love their omelets. Oyster omelets are even considered a national dish in Taiwan - I’m allergic to seafood so I’ve never been able to try it, but from what I’ve seen, I guess the textures are similar to Tortang Talong. It’s sort of claggy, chewy, and creamy all at the same time, with the slightest bounce and slipperiness to each bite. Alone, it was great, but adding chili crisp sent it next level.
Butter Count: It’s actually healthy?
INGREDIENTS
1 Japanese eggplant
1 egg
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 green onion
Rice and chili crisp for serving
INSTRUCTIONS:
Rub a small amount of oil all over the eggplant, and then place it directly over an open flame and use tongs to turn it regularly until all of the skin is completely charred and the flesh is soft.
Transfer the eggplant to a plate and cover it with foil for 15 minutes.
Holding the stem with tongs, peel the skin off the eggplant and discard it.
Whisk the egg, garlic, salt, and white pepper in a bowl.
Holding the eggplant stem with tongs, place the peeled flesh into the bowl with the egg mixture. Use a fork to flatten out the eggplant in the egg mixture, without separating the flesh from the stem, turning at least once to make sure that the egg and garlic are fully coating every bit of eggplant.
Heat the oil in a pan large enough for the flattened eggplant, over medium-high heat.
Holding the stem with tongs, transfer the eggplant to the hot oil and fry 2 minutes per side until the egg is cooked.
Transfer to a bowl and serve with rice. Sprinkle the green onions over the top. The traditional accompaniment is banana ketchup, but I add chili crisp.