MISO GLAZED EGGPLANT

Eggplant is one of my favorite vegetables (it shares pretty much the same love I have for the sweet potato!) and my husband loves it too. It's delicious roasted, steamed, broiled, as babaganoush, in stews, and as I made it this time around, with a simple miso glaze. In Japanese restaurants, this dish is known as Nasu Miso, and it's a pretty straight forward recipe that is bursting with flavor. However, the eggplant is typically fried, and the miso glaze is made with sugar, but I decided to healthify this dish a bit.

If you have never had steamed eggplant, don't be afraid to try it now. I love steamed veggies period, but as I know they don't always retain all of their flavor, the eggplant actually does. The texture on the inside melts like butter, and the flesh is also packed with flavor. Instead of using sugar, I used coconut sugar to make the miso glaze, and as I did not have any sake on hand, I simply made the sauce without using any alcohol, and it came out just as delicous. 

This is a perfect side dish or even main course. You can use the miso glaze with any other vegetable or even with meat.

Husband approved. 

Ingredients:

1/3 cup sesame seeds

1 large eggplant or 4 small Japanese eggplants (they are sweeter!)

3/4 cup Den Miso (miso glaze)

Ingredients for Den Miso:

3/4 cup white miso

1 tbsp coconut sugar

1/3 cup mirin

1 tsp tamari

Directions:

Place eggplants in a steamer and steam for about 25-30 minutes (depends on the steamer you are using). They should be very soft. To prepare the glaze, place all ingredients in a small saucepan on medium heat and whisk until all the ingredients are combined. Do not bring to a boil. 

Slice eggplants in half and pour some of the glaze on each of the halves. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.