Name: Pan-grilled Eggplants with Nước Chấm (Vietnamese Sweet Sour Spicy Sauce)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons fish sauce; 2 tablespoons lime juice (or use calamansi or lemon); 2 tablespoons white sugar; 2 pinches chopped garlic; 2 pinches finely sliced chilies; 2 large Asian eggplants ((the long variety)); 2 tablespoons sesame seed oil; sliced chilies; fried garlic

Pan-grilled Eggplants with Nước Chấm (Vietnamese Sweet Sour Spicy Sauce)

Connie Veneracion

If you keep a jar of Vietnamese sauce in the fridge, cooking a vegetable side dish to go with meat or seafood like this pan-grilled eggplants with nước chấm is a breeze.

Pan-fried Eggplants with Vietnamese Sweet Sour Chili Sauce Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 5 mins

Total Time 15 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Vietnamese

Servings people

Ingredients

For the nước chấm

2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice or use calamansi or lemon
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 pinches chopped garlic
2 pinches finely sliced chilies

To complete the dish

2 large Asian eggplants (the long variety)
2 tablespoons sesame seed oil

To garnish

Instructions

Make the nước chấm

Place all the ingredients for the nước chấm in a jar. Cover tightly and shake until the sugar is fully dissolved. Set aside.

Cook the eggplants

Cut off and discard the top of the eggplants. Cut each eggplant vertically into halves. Cut each half vertically into four then cut the eggplant strips into shorter pieces about two to three inches long.
Heat a frying pan and drizzle in the sesame seed oil to coat the bottom.
Spread the eggplant strips in the hot oil. Leave to sear for a minute then flip to sear the opposite side. Cook the eggplants just long enough to soften; do not allow to turn soggy. Three to four minutes of total cooking time should be enough.

Assemble the dish

Scoop out the eggplants and transfer to a platter.
Drizzle the nước chấm over the eggplants.
Sprinkle with sliced chilies and fried garlic before serving.

Keyword Eggplants

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