Soya-Soaked Oriental Eggplant

1. Chop the eggplant into bite-sized chunks and mince the garlic.

2. Heat your wok or frying pan until it’s smoking hot – you have to go into this hot and fast!

3. Put the eggplant first, then the garlic into your hot pan.

4. Add the sauces and the sugar and toss the eggplant so it’s well-coated.

5. Put on a tight fitting lid and leave for 10-12 minutes. Do not even peek!

6. The eggplant is done when the sauce has been absorbed and the bottoms are a little crispy. It should be nice and soft to eat. Drizzle with the sesame oil.

7. Serve as a side, appetizer or a main, with lovely steaming hot white rice, stir-fried noodles, meat, or salad.

Voila!

The soya sauce must be the light version (not lite- as in low sodium), the dark soya has a totally different taste and is much much darker, used as a marinade instead. For the quantity of soya, I guesstimated. It may sound a lot but the eggplant absorbs it very quickly and basically, you want to cover the eggplant with sauce at the beginning.