Eggplant Donburi 🍆

Suitable for: low phosphorus (90mg), low potassium (390mg), gluten-free, soy-free, medium sodium (412mg), vegan if using vegan Worcestershire sauce – measured for 1 portion

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Eggplants, am I right? When baked to a soft mush or pan fried, those vegetables are some of my very favourite, and this summer I’ve been experimenting with a lot of different recipes!

This recipe is adapted from the amazing Just One Cookbook blog: Soy-Glazed Eggplant Donburi 茄子の甘辛丼. There’s detailed step by step pictures in that article so don’t hesitate to check it out while you’re cooking!
The problem with this recipe is in the title: soy sauce! It requires 2tbsp of soy sauce, and even with low sodium options, that’s still 4g of salt (for about 2 portions). The recipe also uses salt to “dry out” the eggplants, a step we will have to skip as the salt definitely soaks inside the eggplant and cannot be rinsed out. It’s not vegan because there’s anchovies in traditional Worcestershire, but vegan versions of this sauce exist and then you’re all good!

I’m very happy with the results of this recipe! I made it several times, and some friends said it was my best recipe yet, so that’s a good sign!
The trick is that I replaced the 2tbsp soy sauce with 1.5 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, which brought the salt level down from 2g to 0,3grams per portion – much better.

Recipe

Serves 2 portions.
You can find the nutritional information for the ingredients at the bottom of the article.

Ingredients

• 200g (7oz) Japanese, Chinese or American/globe eggplants
• ½ green onion, or shallot leaves, sliced into chiffonade strips
• 1 knob ginger, peeled and grated
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 4 Tbsp cooking oil (I used olive oil, but neutral flavoured is recommended)
• ½ tsp white & black sesame seeds (optional)
• 4 Tbsp mirin (or 4 tsp sugar + 4 Tbsp water)
• 1.5 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ Tbsp lukewarm water
• 1 medium-sized onion, sliced
• Some rice to serve with, preferably short grain Japanese rice

Instructions

1. Start to cook the rice, unsalted (I use this method).
2. Slice the eggplants into ~7mm (¼ inch) slices and place between paper towels for 15min to suck some of the moisture out.
3. Prepare the sauce: in a small bowl, add the Worcestershire sauce and the lukewarm water, and whisk it quickly. Then add the mirin and the ginger. Set aside.
4. Fry the onion in a frying pan over medium heat with a bit of oil until golden and soft. Set aside.
5. In another frying pan, or after the onions are done, heat up 2 Tbsp oil over medium heat.
6. Rub the eggplant slices in the cornstarch, so that they are completely covered but without excess clumps.
7. When the oil is hot in the frying pan, add the eggplant slices in a single layer. Cook until the bottom side is golden brown. Try not to move them too much, to achieve a nice sear.
8. When the bottom side is nicely seared, drizzle the rest of oil (2 Tbsp) on top and flip the eggplant slices to cook the other side.
9. Once both sides are cooked till golden brown, reduce the heat to medium-low heat and add the Worcestershire / mirin / ginger sauce to the pan.
10. Spoon the sauce over the eggplants, or turns the slices upside down regularly so they are well coated in the sauce. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a bit of water to the frying pan, about 1Tbsp at a time (don’t overdo it or you’ll get a watery taste – we want the sauce to be thick).
11. Serve the rice in bowls, then cover with a layer of onions and several eggplant slices. Spoon some of the sauce on top (if it’s too thick, add a bit more water to it in the frying pan). Sprinkle with the green onion and sesame seeds. Serve immediately!

Nutritional informations

Total measurements (for 2 portions):

• 1.5 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce by Heinz (2,8g of salt / 100ml) is ~600mg salt
• 4 Tbsp of mirin by Marukin (0,3g of salt / 100g) is ~200mg salt
• 200g eggplants is ~435mg potassium, ~45mg phosphorus, ~10mg salt
• 75g onion is ~165mg potassium, ~30mg phosphorus, ~7mg salt
• 20g ginger is ~85mg potassium, ~7mg phosphorus, ~7mg salt
• 7,5g cornstarch is ~0,5mg potassium, ~1mg phosphorus, ~0,1mg salt
• 4 Tbsp peanut oil is ~0mg potassium, ~0mg phosphorus, ~0mg salt
• 5g sesame seeds is ~35mg potassium, ~40mg phosphorus, ~0mg salt
• 175g of boiled rice is ~60mg potassium, ~50mg phosphorus, ~0mg salt

For a total of (for 2 portions): 825mg salt, 780mg potassium, 173mg phosphorus, no gluten, no soy, no cholesterol.