Superfood — Eggplant

When I was little I loved going to the market in Hong Kong with my mom. Sometimes we would take a route that would pass near a food vendor located in the basement of a building near the main market.

The vendor’s space was below a large residential apartment, and cutting through the space actually was a short cut to the market. Very convenient for the vendor! Stepping down into the basement, the space would actually open up to the sky, since the center of the building had a large, center-facing atrium. Thoughts of that space still inspire my imagination.

People would order food to-go and there were tables down there and lots of people. I remember a huge iron wok with its deep percussive frying, bubbling, snapping, and crackling sounds. Mmm, I remember hearing the lightly battered foods and things like green stuffed peppers and tofu constantly being rotated in and out of the frying oil. I was short and I remember my mom always guarding me when we stepped by the giant wok.

It was always festive and busy down there, full of the thick scents of fried foods and quick turn-around as orders were made to go. There was one other fast food item that was served there: fried eggplant.

Sometimes my mom bought eggplant as a treat for everyone in my family. We all loved the soft, sweet, tasty snack. Sometimes the eggplant would be cut thicker and fried with minced shrimp paste inside. Amazing!

This memory always inspires me to fry up some eggplant for myself. In North America, eggplant is known as a “superfood” for its nutritional value, and you can get many different types. The one in the picture above is some Chinese eggplant I grew myself! So cute, isn’t it?

To make this fried eggplant, you cut the eggplant diagonally. The batter is NOT thick and has no egg: only flour, corn starch, baking powder, salt and water. Rather than using a fryer I fry these eggplant in a wok which always brings me back to my childhood. Thanks mom for taking me to the market!