October 19, 2009

Tibetan Ratatouille

I’m in love with tonight’s dinner! Or at least I have been since I ate it a half hour ago…eggplant tends to do that to me.

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It has actually been quite a few months since I originally bookmarked a recipe for “Tibetan Ratatouille” on Just Bento, but since it won’t be long before we lose eggplant and tomatoes to the change of seasons, I thought I should go for it sooner rather than later.

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The thing is, I loved the idea of Tibetan ratatouille (love eggplant, love Asian cuisine) but I did not so much love this recipe’s ingredients. So naturally, I changed pretty much everything and this dish cleaned up right nice, if I do say so myself.

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Diana’s Tibetan Ratatouille (original recipe here)

Ingredients:

  • 1 large eggplant (about 1.5 lbs), cubed
  • 5 large tomatoes (about 2 lbs), chopped
  • ~ 3 inches of a leek, diced (alternatively, use scallions)
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil (or olive, sesame, etc.)
  • 1 tbsp garlic, minced
  • 2 inches ginger root, peeled and minced
  • 1 tsp sea salt + more to taste
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne
  • 2 tbsp nama shoyu (or soy sauce)
  • 2 cups frozen chopped spinach

Directions:

  1. Place a wok or large skillet over high heat. Swirl oil to coat the surface.
  2. Add eggplant and press against the side of the wok to scorch the surfaces. Stir-fry vigorously for 5 minutes or so, then add garlic and ginger and continue to stir-fry, making sure nothing is browning too fast or sticking to the bottom.
  3. Add 1 tsp sea salt and stir to combine, then add the chopped tomatoes. Stir-fry for a few minutes, until the juices are released and the tomatoes begin to soften.
  4. Add leeks/onions and cayenne (plus more salt, if desired) and stir until mixture comes to a boil.
  5. Cover and boil, stirring occasionally, until eggplant is nearly done to your liking (at least a good 15-20 minutes or so, for me!), at which point add nama shoyu/soy sauce and spinach and stir until all is thawed and well combined.
  6. Serve over brown rice and top with additional leeks/scallions and/or additional nama shoyu, if desired.

Serves 4

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If it seems like a rather salty recipe, I wouldn’t blame you—and that’s after I cut a lot out! The original recipe called for 2 tsp of salt, plus more to taste, and then 2-4 tbsp soy sauce! And that’s not taking into account the fact that it also called for canned tomatoes and a half-cup of broth. I’m probably heavier-handed with salt than I ought to be, but even I could tell that the recipe was too salty before ever tasting it. I did add 2 tsp sea salt, but wrote 1 tsp above because next time I would definitely stay conservative and only add more after serving, if need be. Know thyself and salt accordingly!

Clean and Vegan MoFo-worthy: it doesn’t get much better than that, in my world. :)

In blog news...

  • Find an old friend at a new blog here, peas and thank you.
  • You can peasandthankyou ignore this giveaway for an ice cream maker - I obviously need to win it more than you do.

14 comments:

Gena said...

Mofo worthy indeed! I love ratatouille and this is a great variation :)

Dori said...

Wow, I need to make that. I LOVE eggplant!

Devan said...

Woah! brilliant. Must make this <3 eggplant is the bomb-diggity.

emily said...

Ha, now I'm going to bookmark this recipe and I'm sure it will take me forever to make and that I'll make changes as well (although not too many, it looks yummy)

chow and chatter said...

oh this is a great eggplant recipe yummy nice blog Rebecca

Mama Pea said...

Thank you for the link love, my friend. Just for that, I'm not entering the ice cream maker giveaway.

Jhonny walker said...

I love eggplants! A very personal favorite Its very similar to an Italian recipe from which i adapted a dish
http://food-thought-for.blogspot.com/2009/10/aubergine-brinjal-or-eggplants-with.html

that coconut oil would give it a terrific twist!

BTW, I am BIG fan of tibetan food. Its so so good.

Anonymous said...

That looks mm mm tasty!
And yes, I ignored the giveaway for you. YOU WOULD use it more than me.

HAPPY DAY LOVAHHHHHH!


P.s. I promised myself I would do this (my last post says why):
Succession- a change in species in an area over time following disturbance of creation of anew substrate.
Rocks -> pioneer community (lichens, mosses) -> tree seedlings -> -> Cliax community

katherine said...

That recipe looks AMAZING!!So funny that we just watched Ratatouille this weekend too :)

Also, it's totally blowing my mind that the ice cream maker giveaway is sponsored by The Huz's former employer!

Jenny said...

looks great, but all I can think of is that Ratatouille disney movie -- you've ever seen it?! so goooooood.

elise said...

you crack me up at how you tweak recipes...because i do the same thing. a dish may give me an idea, and next thing i know the thing i made doesnt even remotely resemble the OG dish...oh well.

a successful eggplant dish makes you my hero.

Missy said...

Looks delicious! I love eggplant but never have a clue what to do with it! You are the best cook ever.

Abby (Abbys Vegan Eats) said...

Looks delicious! I am loving all the eggplant in season right now!! :)

Unknown said...

hehe, thanks for the link love! and what a lovely ratatouille :)