EGGPLANT SAMBAL


EGGPLANT SAMBAL
      Eggplant/Brinjal/Aubergine -  as the name is its variety. There are different types of eggplants – Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Italian, American, Purple, Green, White eggplant, etc., and each variety is unique in its own sense with its wide array of shapes, sizes, colours and varieties.  Needless to say why the versatile eggplant has become a star ingredient that I and my daughter have come to love a lot.
     You can use any type of eggplant for this recipe. The most important thing is to achieve perfectly cooked, moist, and tender eggplants, along with perfectly sauteed fragrant sambal.
     I remember eating Sambal Eggplants in LCCT Airport food court in  KL.  Since then I always wanted to cook this at home.  When I initially learned to make sambal, I tried this recipe, and after a few attempts, I was able to get perfect sambal eggplants.  I cook Potatoes, Okra (Lady's finger), Petai (Stinky Bean), Kankung ( Chinese Watercress) etc., in the same way.  This spicy sambal goes well with Fragrant Rice or Fried Rice. It can also be had as a side dish for rice and curry or for chapatis.

Cuisine - Malaysia (Southeast Asia)
Course  - Side Dish
Spice Level  - Medium-High
Difficulty - Easy
 Serves - 3-4
Author - SM

Preparation Time -
Cooking Time -

INGREDIENTS :

Eggplant - 1/2 Kg
Fish Sauce - 1/2 Tspn
Salt - To Taste
Sugar/ Palm Sugar (Gula Melaka) - 1/4 Tspn
Oil - 2 Tbspn

For Sambal :

Dry Red Chillies - 10-15 Nos.
Fresh Red Chillies (Bird's Eye Chilli) - 5 Nos.
Shallots - 6 Nos.
Garlic - 3 Cloves
Dry Shrimp Paste (Belacan) - 1/2 Tspn
Tamarind - 1 Tspn

METHOD :

  • Rinse the eggplant with water and cut into halves or into rounds.
  • Soak the eggplants in water with a pinch of salt to prevent them from turning brown.
  • Soak the Dry Red Chillies in hot water for few minutes or until they become soft.
  • Dry roast the Dry Shrimp Paste in a pan until aromatic.
  • Grind all the ingredients mentioned under 'For Sambal' into a smooth paste.
  • Heat oil in a pan.
  • Saute the ground Sambal mix until oil separate and it becomes fragrant.
  • Add Eggplants and Salt to the Sambal and stir-fry until it becomes soft.
  • Finally, add Fish Sauce and Palm Sugar to the above and give a quick stir.
  • Leave it on a low flame for few minutes.
  • Serve hot. 

NOTES :

  • Adjust the number of chillies to your preferred spice level.  The amount mentioned above is for spicy sambal.
  • Do not overcook the Eggplants.
  • Can use a mortar and pestle to pound the sambal ingredients.
  • Can make extra sambal in the same method mentioned above and can be stored in a refrigerator for future use.

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