In the world of vegetables, eggplants are the fugly, forgotten sisters of more beautiful, glamorous, and promiscuous produce such as the cherry tomato (such luscious color!) or the cucumber (so tall! so slender!). It’s not that there’s anything quite so unlikable about eggplant. It’s just that collective unfamiliarity breeds ignorant attempts at preparing eggplant, rendering her mushy, spongy, greasy, slimy, and just plain not-in-the-mood. This wins her no admirers.
But you can believe what you’ve heard about neglected ladies making eager bedfellows! For treat eggplant right, make your approach firm, yet gentle, and she will truly come into her own, yielding to your touch, trying her best to please you in new and exotic ways, teasing you, causing your eyes to roll in ecstasy. Oh, why did you ever doubt her, why did you ever think it strange to coat one another with miso paste and honey, how could you have not seen this strange and beautiful thing unfolding before your very eyes this whole time?!?!
Okay. But seriously. Let’s talk about the eggplant’s virtues:
1) Low-maintenance
2) Excellent child-bearing hips
3) Sophisticated purple hue
4) Absorbs flavors well
There are recipes that would have you mix your miso with vinegar, sugar, water, oil, blah-di-freakin’-blah, before you can even lay hands on your eggplant. So unnecessary here! Eggplant enjoys a good quickie, and this baby is hot and ready for you in twenty minutes tops.
Hey, I didn’t say NO foreplay.
Try this big girl on for size, and you won’t find her anything but luscious, oh-so-sweet, yet punchy, and totally kissable–I mean, lickable. I mean…I would never bring miso into the bedroom. At least, I’d never admit to it.
**Wanna try a similar salty-sweet approach to salmon? Check it out.**
Sexy Yet Unassuming Miso Honey Eggplant
Serves 2-3
Go Get:
1/4 cup mellow miso paste
1/4 cup raw honey
2 cloves minced garlic
1 heaping tablespoon minced onion
few grinds fresh pepper
2 medium eggplants
Go Do:
Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Rinse and dry eggplants. Cut off top and slice lengthwise, from top to bottom, into 3/4 inch thick slices. Lay on parchment-lined cookie sheets (I needed two). In small bowl, cream together miso, honey, garlic, onion, and pepper. Spread evenly on eggplant slices. Bake until eggplant is just tender, then switch to the broiler until the tops are browned and bubbly (optional, but pretty–the eggplant, she will like it). Serve over steamed brown rice and, if you’re craving an extra indulgence, a fried egg with a still-runny yolk.
this is hilarious – you have quite the imagination 😉
and mmmm, it sounds really good! I will try it! love me some eggplant…
Thanks, Kari! Be sure to buy the **free-range** eggplant…bwa ha ha!
What’s “mild” miso? I just have in the shops barley, brown rice, or just plain miso paste. I guess the latter? What colour is it?
thanks!
Hi, Nadia. Mellow misos are often called “short-term” misos because they have less salt and less soy, and more rice or barley. Due to this, the fermentation happens more quickly, and the flavor is milder. They’re usually white or a beige-y yellow. Traditional misos are often dubbed “long-term” misos because they take a long time to ferment and age, producing a rich, darker miso with a stronger taste. Barley and brown rice can both be used for either kind of miso, so that info wouldn’t help you there.
I’m guessing that something labeled as plain old “miso paste” would be in the traditional, long-term category, though I’m not sure, and I’d go by color in that case. Honestly, you could use either in this recipe, though. Just be sure to taste the miso mixture before putting it on the eggplant first if you’re using darker miso–you may need to add more honey.
Good luck–I hope that helped! Let me know how it turns out!
Genevieve
Thanks for your knowledgeable explanation! I found “mild” miso in a Japanese supermarket. I made it and it was tasty. Only thing is: the oven was so hot at the temp you suggest, it meant the aubergine was only in there about 10 minutes, and although I was amazed it could be cooked enough to eat in that short time, I did think maybe it would have tasted better to put it in for ten minutes, take it out, and then put the sauce on before shoving it back in. Your way is certainly faster and simpler, but I might try it as I describe here next time.
Thanks though for a new way to have aubergine!
Nadia
No problem, Nadia–I’m glad I could help to expand your repertoire! I’m growing eggplants in my garden this year, and I’m on the hunt for more recipes myself.
Your method sounds great, too–I like the “hot and quick” version because I have an extreme aversion to mushy eggplant (and it’s so easy to make it mushy!), and I got frustrated with how messy it was to spread the miso mixture on hot, soggy eggplant. But if I cut mine into thicker slices, it might work a lot better.
Thanks for commenting, and for reporting back on how it worked out!
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