Indian summer signals the finale of deeply purple eggplants at the market. Toss cubes with tender pieces of pork in a fiery chili sauce. The eggplant flesh emerges from the wok seared on the outside but silken at heart.
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Servings
4
Ingredients
1 pork tenderloin, about 1 lb., silverskin removed
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 eggplant, about 1 lb.
2 Tbs. chili-garlic sauce, such as Sriracha
1 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp. rice vinegar
3 Tbs. peanut or canola oil
1 Tbs. peeled and grated fresh ginger
6 green onions, white and light green portions, 4 halved lengthwise and cut into 3/4-inch pieces, 2 finely chopped
Directions
Put the pork tenderloin in the freezer for 20 minutes to firm it up for slicing. Cut into strips about 1/2 inch thick, 2 inches long and 3/4 inch wide. Season generously with salt and pepper. Cut the eggplant into strips of the same size.
In a small bowl, whisk together the chili-garlic sauce, sesame oil and vinegar until smooth. Set aside.
In a wok or large fry pan over high heat, warm 2 Tbs. of the peanut oil until very hot. Add the eggplant and stir-fry until slightly softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the ginger and the green onion pieces and stir-fry for 1 minute. Transfer the vegetables to a platter.
Add the remaining 1 Tbs. peanut oil to the wok over high heat and swirl to coat. Add the pork, distributing it evenly, and cook without moving it for about 20 seconds. Using a metal spatula, toss and stir the pork every 15 to 20 seconds until browned, about 3 minutes. Return the vegetables to the pan and add the chili-garlic mixture. Reduce the heat to medium and stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes to blend the flavors and warm through. Scatter with the chopped green onions and serve immediately. Serves 4.
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma One Pot of the Day, by Kate McMillan (Weldon Owen, 2012).
Rated 5 out of
5 by
Denise from
Wonderful recipeWonderful recipe! I did substitute chicken for pork as pork hurts my teeth. Also I did cook substantially longer as I despise the taste of undercooked, bitter eggplant. I may have added Chinese 5 spice as I tend to add this to everything. I also added a cup of thickened chicken stock to serve mixture over flavored rice. The result was a fabulous, flavorful
summer dish.
Date published: 2019-08-26
Rated 3 out of
5 by
Anabirgite from
Needs More FlavorA little bland, followed instructions, served with sushi rice I prepared separately. At the table my husband started adding condiments to just up the flavor. We thought it needed a little sweet, so he added Thai sweet red chili sauce and then some liquid from the pickled ginger finally made it flavorable enough I may make again in future. Loved the eggplant.
%20-%3F&md=false&ua=Mozilla%2F5.0%20AppleWebKit%2F537.36%20(KHTML%2C%20like%20Gecko%3B%20compatible%3B%20ClaudeBot%2F1.0%3B%20%2Bclaudebot%40anthropic.com)&tz=0&utm_source=&utm_medium=&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=&utm_source_platform=&utm_creative_format=&utm_marketing_tactic=){kind=tracking}
