Yangshuo-Style Eggplant and Tofu

If you're missing Ruth Reichl now that Gourmet magazine has folded, check out her weekly program on PBS.  It is a beautifully-filmed series documenting her trips to foodie destinations around the world with many unusual recipes.  One of our favorite episodes introduced us to the Chinese province of Yangshuo which offers breathtaking landscapes and amazing food.  After watching that program, we were inspired to create our own (vegetarian) version of an eggplant dish from Yangshuo featured on the program.  The recipe includes a few unusual ingredients, but we were lucky to find everything we needed at our local grocer, and our addition of tofu converts the original vegetable dish into a filling meal.  This is a quick recipe ready in just a few minutes once you have your ingredients assembled.

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Yangshuo-Style Eggplant and Tofu
serves 2 as an entree

Ingredients

1/2          lb         Japanese eggplant
2             Tbs      vegetable oil
2                         garlic cloves, minced
2             tsp        fresh ginger, minced
1/2          tsp        chile paste
1.2          tsp        fermented black beans (see picture above)
1/3          cup       water
1             Tbs       vegetarian stir-fry sauce (see picture above)
1             Tbs       soy sauce
2                          scallions, white and green parts cut into 3" pieces
8             oz         extra-firm tofu
1             cup       sushi rice

Procedure

1. Wrap tofu in paper towels and place between two plates for about ten minutes to drain excess liquid.  Discard paper towels, cut tofu into 1" cubes.
2. Cook rice.
3. Cut eggplant into thin slices .
4. Heat wok over high until it smokes.  Add oil and swirl around pan.  Immediately add eggplant and fry until softened and browned, about 2 minutes.  Add garlic and ginger and continue to fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
5. Add chile paste and black beans and cook about 30 seconds, then add water, vegetarian stir-fry sauce, soy sauce and tofu.  Cook until eggplant and tofu are coated with a thickened sauce, about 2 minutes.  Add scallions and cook briefly (about 30 seconds).
6. Serve immediately over cooked rice.