Calling all you Eggplant lovers out there! Here’s a flavor bomb you won’t want to miss – Spicy Chinese Eggplant with Szechuan Sauce -a tasty, easy vegan dinner recipe you can serve over rice, cauliflower rice, rice noodles, black rice or even quinoa! See 45-second video!
I picked up some eggplant at the farmers market the other day thinking I would make this baked Ratatoullie Recipe, but then somehow I got a hankering for something spicier. Oops, change of plans!
I remembered a dish we had in Shanghai a few years back, and dug up my old recipe notes. There it was in BOLD – Spicy Chinese Eggplant with Szechuan Sauce with a huge star and circle around it – a reminder to share it with you!
So here it is, and boy is this tasty! I can’t wait for you to give it a go.
Another vegan dinner recipe for you to try out!
How to make Spicy Chinese Eggplant | 30-Second Video!
Why this Chinese Eggplant works!
- eggplant is crispy, not soggy
- uses the minimum amount of oil
- amazing flavor- spicy, garlicky, subtly sweet
- it is vegan!
- it’s easy!
How to make Chinese Eggplant:
It starts with cutting the eggplant into bite-sized pieces. Cut at a diagonal so each piece is like a triangle, about an inch thick at its thickest end.
Try to get get them roughly the same size for even cooking. Cut a wedge then turn the eggplant, cut again and turn.
TIP #1
This works best with Japanese eggplant ( long and skinny) versus globe eggplant.
Once all the eggplant are cut ( 4 x 10-inch eggplants), place in a bowl of salted water for 20 minutes.
TIP #2
Salting the eggplant helps the eggplant soak up less oil when stir-frying.
Cover with a plate so the eggplant is submerged. Let sit 20-30 mins.
TIP #3
Mise en place ( get things prepped and ready)
While the eggplant soaks, prep the garlic, ginger and Szechuan sauce and place them by the stove.
Drain the eggplant, rinse, then pat dry with a kitchen towel.
Then coat in cornstarch. This helps the eggplant get crispy.
TIP #4:
Sear the eggplant in an extra-large flat skillet, versus a round wok. The eggplant need a little time to cook through and get each side brown. This is difficult to do in a wok.
Then begin searing each side.
Sear them in two batches, and this is where you will need a little patience. Each batch will take about 10 minutes, and require to turn the eggplant over one by one to get each side golden.
If you are in a hurry you can use two skillets, but it can be a lot to manage.
So when the eggplant are deeply golden, even slightly charred, set them aside.
Stir fry the ginger and garlic for a quick minute then add the chilies. Make sure to have your fan on!
Keep in mind, you never eat these chilies– they just give the oil a little spicy heat, permeating the whole dish.
Then pour in the Szechuan sauce you’ve already prepped.
Cook it for 20 seconds then add the Eggplant back into the skillet, gently coating.
This will smell amazing.
Place it in a serving dish, or divide among bowls over brown rice, black rice or quinoa and top with scallions or chives and roasted peanuts.
Sometimes I’ll even top it with this Peanut Chili Crunch which adds great texture and flavor. Always nice to have on hand ( my husband looooooves this stuff!).
What I love about this Chinese Eggplant recipe is the eggplant is deliciously caramelized with crispy charred edges – the best texture!
Worth every minute you spend browning those sides.
And YES it is quite addictive!
Make this Chinese Eggplant soon, while eggplants are still available at your farmer’s market!
Enjoy!
And as always, if you make this, please rate and comment below. VERY Appreciated!!!
xoxo
Sylvia
More Chinese-inspired Recipes you may like:
- Szechuan Asparagus with Garlic, Ginger and Chilies
- Szechuan Tofu and Veggies
- Authentic Szechuan Sauce
- Sheet-Pan Szechuan Chicken and Brussel Sprouts
- Kung Pao Noodles!
- Chinese Five Spice
Szechuan Eggplant
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: Main, vegan
- Method: stovetop, stir-fry
- Cuisine: Chinese
Description
Chinese Eggplant with Szechuan Sauce with chilies and peanuts– a tasty, easy vegan dinner recipe! Serve with Rice, black rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa or rice noodles.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs Japanese Eggplant (about 4 x 10 inch eggplants)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- bowl of water
- —-
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2–4 tablespoons peanut oil ( or wok oil)
- —
- 4 cloves garlic, rough chopped
- 2 teaspoons ginger, finely minced
- 5–10 dried red chilies
- 1 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns ( or sub regular peppercorns)
- 1/4 cup soy sauce or low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon garlic chili paste ( or sub 1 teaspoon chili flakes)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine (or mirin)
- 3 tablespoons sugar, brown sugar, coconut sugar, maple syrup or alternative
- 1/2 teaspoon five spice
Garnish with scallions and roasted peanuts or this Peanut Chili crunch
Instructions
- Cut eggplant into 1/2 inch thick half-moons or into bite-sized pieces ( see photos). Place in a big bowl covered with water and stir in 2 teaspoons salt. Cover with a plate and let stand 20-30 minutes.
- In the meantime, chop the garlic and ginger and make the Szechuan Sauce.
- To make the Szechuan Sauce: Toast the Szechuan peppercorns in a dry skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Crush. Place these along with the remaining ingredients ( soy, chili paste, sesame oil, rice vinegar, Chinese cooking wine, sugar, and five spice) in a small bowl and whisk. Set by the stove.
- Drain and rinse the eggplant and pat dry with a towel. Toss with the corn starch.
- Working in 2 batches, heat 1 -2 tablespoons oil in an extra-large skillet over medium heat. Add half the eggplant spreading them out. You want to get both sides nice and golden, and the insides cooked through -so take your time here and dont rush this step. Let one side brown then turn them over using tongs. This will take about 10 minutes for each batch. ( If in a hurry sometimes I’ll use 2 pans.) Set the eggplant aside.
- Add 1 more tablespoon oil to the skillet, and over medium heat, add the garlic and ginger, stirring for 2 minutes. Turn the fan on, add the dried chilis and stir one minute. Pour the Szechuan sauce into the pan and bring to a simmer for 20 seconds. Add the eggplant back into the skillet, tossing gently for about 1 minute. If it seems dry add a tablespoon of water to loosen.
- Place in a serving dish and top with scallions and optional peanuts.
- Serve with rice, cauliflower rice, black rice or rice noodles.
Notes
Keywords: Szechuan eggplant, stir fry eggplant, Chinese eggplant, stir fried eggplant, Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce
This recipe was delicious! We’re making it twice this week! Are there other vegetables that you think would be delicious with this sauce? We’re obsessed with it!! Thank you so much!
★★★★★
Glad you like this one. Yes, I think many veggies would work well here or even a veggie stirfry!
Frying took forever and too much oil. I added water and closed the lid to cook the eggplants.
★★★
I was very disappointed and tossed away the fried eggplants. 2 Tbsp of oil weren’t enough and the eggplants absorbed lots of oil around 1 cup. what have I done wrong?
Did you soak them first in salted water?
Yes, I soaked the eggplants in salted water.
Ok,, interesting. Not sure what happened here. Usually that helps prevent the eggplant from soaking up too much oil.
Hallo again Sylvia, this recipe is a hit! Huge one, I may add. I made it yesterday as an appetizer when we had a friend coming over and both me, our friend and my hubby loved it. Our guest had a third helping haha. And my hubby insists I make it again today, this time as the main event. So, what can I say, not only is it good, but also kind of addictive I guess, but in a good way! Thanks and keep’em coming!
★★★★★
Thanks Alex! glad he approved! 😉
Best homecooked eggplant I’ve ever managed to make! We both loved it! Very tasty and easy dish to make – thank you!
★★★★★
This is truly delicious! Online recipes are often hit and miss, but the ingredient ratios for this Szechuan Eggplant are perfect! This is my new fav, I’ll be eating it till the cows come home! Thank you, Sylvia.
★★★★★
I can’t eat spicy food. Is there a substitute for the spicy ingredients?
Just leave them out. 😉
I cannot believe I made something so tasty!
I had never soaked aubergines before – and they really absorb a lot less oil when cooking. I’m so impressed!
This dish is so full of flavour – and so easy to make!
Thank you so much!
★★★★★
Very tasty!! I was surprised that no one comment on using way too much oil in cooking the eggplant. The next time I’ll either bake or grill.
★★★★★
hi
★★★★★
Hi Bob.
I made this on a whim and, though I didn’t have mirin, it turned out deliciously fabulous. The sauce is surprisingly easy and delicious and I plan on making other veggies with it. The crispy, yet silky, texture the starch yields is amazing. I was happy to see how quickly the dish came together. Absolute winner and on ny permanent rotation! Many thanks.
★★★★★
Wonderful flavor, helpful cooking tips. I added ground pork and dry shrimp.
Would be just as lovely without the meat. The sauce was delicious.
★★★★★
Made this first time today. Very simple and relatively uncomlicated. Great results, the family loved it.
★★★★★
Sylvia, this is phenomenally delicious, easily the very best Asian eggplant recipe I have ever used. It is the first and only time that I have felt like I made something comparable to a dish that I thought was first-rate in a Chinese restaurant. Thank you!
★★★★★
Awesome tina! Glad htis worked for you!
Awesome Tina, Glad you enjoyed!
Fragrant, delicious, textural. Packed with flavour. Ticks all the boxes… And vegan! Such an incredible recipe for a mid week meal or treating friends. Love love love. Massively reccomend.
★★★★★
Awesome Keeley! Great to hear 🙌
This was incredibly tasty! I used a combo of Sriracha and Gochujang sauces instead of the chili paste and added sautéed asparagus–it was delicious!
★★★★★
Perfect! Thanks and glad you liked it!
Such a delicious dish! It really tastes like in China 🤩
I was surprised how easy to do the five spice seasoning and the Szechuan sauce.
As I didn’t had enough eggplants, I added champignons, what I can highly recommend.
Thanks for your healthy delicious recipes.
★★★★★
Yummy. I didn’t have chinese red peppers so I used cayenne powder and added it to the sauce. I also used half the oil. I try to cook oil free.
Pretty good though saltier than I would have liked. Great texture! We did a packet of tofu up the same way as the eggplant for protein and added an onion. Would make again though it did take quite a bit of time.
★★★★
This was a great recipe and will go into my rotation. They only thing that wasn’t good was the part that I did wrong (I forgot to toast and grind the peppercorns, I used whole black ones). It wasn’t too hard and I think I will be able to prepare it faster the more times I make it.
★★★★★
I followed the recipe almost exactly, including making the five spice powder. The only change I made was to grill the eggplant as I was being lazy . It turned out super flavourful and tasted like something you would get at an authentic Chinese restaurant. It tastes even better the next day. The toasted peanuts added a lovely crunch and extra dimension to the dish. Thank you for this lovely recipe!
★★★★★
Great taste, easy to follow . Cuisson of eggplant will take some practice. I really loved the taste. Thanks
★★★★
One of the best Szechuan dishes I’ve made! Thanks for this
★★★★★
Thanks JP
Thank you for this recipe! Me and my husband really enjoyed it. We used Rosa Bianca (Italian) and Rosita (Puerto Rican) variety of eggplants (which we grew) and it still came out great! We had this for our Thanksgiving dinner and hubby said this is the best dish!
Love it!
@veggygardengirl
★★★★★
thanks so much Abby!
fantastic recipe with tons of flavor!
★★★★★
love this recipe! never have 5 spice but try to make a blend like it and it still tastes great. good to combine with Chinese zucchini pancakes
★★★★★
One of my favorites! I love this recipe! Am trying out others.
★★★★★
Thank you! Modified a bit based on what I have for spices, and vinegar. Used red wine vinegar and white wine, also walnuts because I didn’t have peanuts. Still, delicious end result. The recipe is a bomb!
★★★★★
Perfect!
Fantastic recipe. Easy to follow and oh so delicious. I might try it with mushrooms too next time.
★★★★★
Loved it!!
★★★★★