Name: Steamed Eggplant Recipe {Chinese Huai Yang Style}
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 1 lb. fresh eggplant, about 2 Chinese eggplant; 2 tbsp. light soy sauce; 3 tbsp. Zhenjiang vinegar; 1/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt, optional, see notes; 1 tbsp. minced garlic; 1 tbsp. sesame oil; 1 stalk of green onion, finely chopped

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Steamed Eggplant Chinese Huai Yang Style is a traditional everyday home cooking as I grew up in Suzhou in the 70’s. It features steamed eggplant strips poured over with a soy vinegar garlic sauce. A splash of sesame oil and finely chopped green onions elevate the taste and look of the dish. So refreshing and yummy. It is perhaps the easiest, quickest, and heathiest way of enjoying this superfood vegetable eggplant.

The easiest tasty way to enjoy eggplant superfood

The long dark purple eggplant is one of the common vegetables in China’s Yangtze River Delta area as I grew up. It is now one of the must-grow vegetables for our backyard vegetable garden.

Chinese eggplant growing in our backyard garden

Eggplant is a superfood vegetable that contains many essential nutrients, including fiber, copper, manganese, thiamine, and vitamin B-6. They also contain rich antioxidants. As a result, experts believe eggplant can help with heart health, regulate cholesterol, prevent cancer and improve cognitive function.

Steamed eggplant is by far the easiest way to enjoy this superfood. Di San Xian, or Chinese stir-fried eggplant with green pepper, is another popular tasty eggplant recipe.

Di San Xian {Stir Fried Egg Plant, Tomato and Green Pepper}

How to make steamed eggplant easy, delicious and health?

First thing first is to get fresh eggplant for steamed eggplant

If the eggplant is not so fresh, while they might be still good for making other dishes, they won’t make an excellent candidate for this recipe.

Tip No.2 is to cut eggplant in long thin strips

To prepare eggplant, first is to trim the bottom, and then divide the eggplant into 2-3 segments by cutting across the eggplant. For each segment, cut alongside the eggplant in one direction into 3-4 sections, and then turn eggplant 90 degree and cut alongside the eggplant again to get thin long strips.

No.3 Tip is to lay eggplant strips flat with minimal over-lay

This is to make sure we cook eggplant evenly and avoid the situation that some eggplant strips and others are not.

A 9×13 inch glassware coupled with the 14-inch wok is my go-to steaming set. The glassware can sit on the sloppy edge of the wok with no steaming rack needed. The rectangular glassware is very spacious and does a wonderful job toward this goal.

steam eggplant in a 9x13-inch glassware paired with 14-inch wok — steam eggplant in a 9×13-inch glassware paired with 14-inch wok

Tip No.4 is optimal steaming techniques

Add 4 cups of water into a 14-inch wok, turn the heat to medium-high and bring it to a boil first. Carefully add the eggplant, cover the wok with a dome-shaped lid and steam for 10 minutes. The dome-shaped lid allows more space for the hot steam to circulate, which helps the cooking process.

Safety kitchen tips – turn off the heat temporarily while you add the eggplant into the wok. Ware kitchen insulation gloves to avoid being burnt by the hot steam.

The last but not least is the amazingly simple, tasty and healthy vinegar garlic sauce

A sauce made of simple ingredients, yet amazingly refreshing and delicious. This Chinese-style vinegar garlic sauce is extremely versatile too. You can pretty much pour over any meat or vegetable and make them taste better. Sea Kelp Salad featuring this sauce is absolutely another excellent way to apply this iconic sauce.

Chinese Vinegar Garlic Sauce {easy yummy healthy and versatile}

Steamed Eggplant Recipe {Chinese Huai Yang Style}

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Steamed Eggplant Chinese Huai Yang Style features steamed eggplant strips poured over with a vinegar garlic sauce. A splash of sesame oil and finely chopped green onions elevate the taste and look of the dish. So refreshing and yummy. It is perhaps the easiest and heathiest way of consuming eggplant.

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh eggplant, about 2 Chinese eggplant

For the vinegar garlic sauce:

2 tbsp. light soy sauce
3 tbsp. Zhenjiang vinegar
1/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt, optional, see notes
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 stalk of green onion, finely chopped

Instructions

Gather all ingredients:
Add everything under "For the vinegar garlic sauce" into a small bowl and mix well. Use a compact food processor to mince the garlic quick and easy.
Wash and rinse eggplant well. Trim the bottom, divide the eggplant into 2-3 segments by cutting across the eggplant. For each segment, cut alongside the eggplant in one direction into 3-4 sections, and then turn eggplant 90 degree and cut alongside the eggplant again to get thin long strips.
Lay eggplant strips flat with minimal over-lay into a 9x13-inch glassware.
Add 4 cups of water into a 14-inch wok, turn the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Add the glassware with the eggplant to wok. Cover the wok with a dome-shaped lid and steam for 10 minutes.
Turn off the heat, wait for about 1-2 minutes before uncover the lid.
Transfer the cooked eggplant to a serving plate or bowl. Pour the sauce over the eggplant in a circular motion. Garnish with the finely chopped green onion. All done! Enjoy a refreshing and yummy steamed eggplant.