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Preparation
25 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Pickled eggplant can be considered a very famous mixed salad from the Central region with an attractive flavor that is loved by many people. Today, let’s join the kitchen and try to make this pickled eggplant dish!
Ingredients for Pickled Eggplant For 4 people
Eggplant 400 gr Small cucumber 3 fruits Garlic 1 bulb Chili pepper 2 fruits Chili 10 fruits Fermented fish sauce 200 ml Sugar 100 gr
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose good, crunchy eggplant
- You can choose white, green, or purple eggplants
- It is advisable to select those that are medium to small in size for more crunchiness
- Avoid choosing very large, soft fruits that ooze when squeezed as they may be spoiled
Where to find fermented fish sauce?
- You can find fermented fish sauce at most grocery stores, markets, convenience stores, or supermarkets. Additionally, TasteVN is also selling fermented fish sauce products for you to check out.
- For convenience, you can also use pre-mixed fermented fish sauce to prepare the pickled eggplant dish.
-800x450.jpg "How to make pickled eggplant with authentic Central Vietnamese flavor, crispy and rich 2")
How to make Pickled Eggplant
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Prepare the ingredients
Peel the garlic, wash it clean, then chop or use a blender to puree it. Wash the bird’s eye chili and the long chili, then finely chop the long chili.
When you buy eggplant, cut off the stem and soak it in a basin of water mixed with a little salt and lemon juice for about 10 minutes. Then, take it out and wash it clean with water and let it drain.
Prepare another basin of diluted brine, then cut the eggplant in half and add it in. To reduce the bitterness and pungency of the eggplant, soak it completely in water for 4 – 5 hours, then take it out to drain.
Wash the cucumber, cut it in half lengthwise, remove the seeds inside, and cut it into bite-sized pieces.
Soak the cucumber in diluted brine for about 10 minutes, then take it out, wash it clean, and let it drain. Dry the prepared cucumber in the shade for about 8 hours until it is dry and firm.
Tip:- To avoid dust, you should cover the cucumber with a thin cloth.
- If conditions do not allow drying outside, you can also put the cucumber in an oven at 70 degrees Celsius and dry it for about 2 hours.
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Prepare the dipping sauce
Place a pot on the stove, add 200ml of dipping sauce along with 100ml of water and simmer on low heat. Add 100g of sugar, stir well until the sugar dissolves and the sauce boils, then turn off the heat.
When the sauce has completely cooled, add minced garlic and chili and mix well.
Tip:- If you want to make more, just mix the dipping sauce in a ratio of 2 sauce to 1 water.
- You should adjust the amount of sugar and water added to suit your family’s taste!
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Mix the sauce and eggplant
Prepare a container, add eggplant and cucumber, then add the garlic chili dipping sauce and mix well.
To prevent the eggplant and cucumber from browning and to soak up the sauce evenly, use a heavy object (like a bowl) to press down on the ingredients so they are submerged in the sauce.
Cover tightly, store in a cool, dry place away from sunlight for about 2 – 4 hours, then place in the refrigerator and use gradually.
Tip: If you like a sour taste when eating, add a little lemon juice and mix well.
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Final Product
We have completed the very delicious pickled eggplant dish with an enticing aroma and very eye-catching colors. The eggplant and pickles are tasty, crunchy, and thoroughly infused with the rich flavor of the sauce, making it wonderful when served with hot rice!
Tips for Successful Execution
- You should only use glass jars or containers to soak the eggplant and pickles, not plastic jars, as the plastic particles can decompose when the sauce is fermented for a long time, which can be very toxic when consumed. Additionally, the sauce when fermented in plastic containers tends to have a very unpleasant smell and is less tasty.
- You need to ensure that the glass jar is very clean by rinsing it with boiling water, then using a paper towel to wipe it clean for sterilization before adding the ingredients to ensure safety and to help the soaked eggplant last longer.
Above are the very simple steps to prepare pickled eggplant dish that is very rich and appealing. Wish you success in completing this pickled eggplant dish.
*Refer to images and recipes from the website cookpad.com.
