Everyone loves this dish, even those who don't particularly like egg plant. The flavor virtually explodes with a lively combination of sweet, spicy, tart and savory followed by the refreshing crunch of fresh water chestnuts. Serve as a side dish or first course for Western menus. Cut eggplant into 1/2-inch wide by 2-inch long strips. Mix together soy sauce, sugar and chicken stock. Set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wide, flat skillet. When hot, add half of the eggplant. Sauté, stirring constantly until seared and wilted, about 5 minutes. Remove to a plate. Cook remaining eggplant, adding more oil if needed. Transfer to plate. Set aside. Heat a wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, the ginger, garlic and chile; cook gently but do not brown. Add water chestnuts and half of the green onions; stir-fry for 5 seconds. Increase heat to high, add reserved soy sauce mixture and the eggplant. Toss quickly over high heat until the sauce is reduced and absorbed into eggplant, 1 to 2 minutes. Fold in vinegar and sesame oil. Remove to a serving dish. Top with remaining green onions and sesame seeds. Serve hot or cold.

From Geminis MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini

Eggplant, Szechuan Style 2

2 cups Eggplant, or one medium  eggplant
1/2 cup of flour
Flavoring Mixture
1 teaspoon of chopped garlic
1 teaspoon of chopped ginger
1 tablespoon of chopped green onion
1/2 cup of ground pork or beef
2 tablespoons of cooking oil
6 cups of deep frying oil
Sauce
1 tablespoon of dry sherry
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
2 teaspoons of hot bean sauce
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of Chinese black vinegar
1 teaspoon of corn starch
1/3 cup of sauce stock
Garnish
1 tablespoon of chopped green onion

Shake the eggplant in flour, making sure that all the cut surfaces are coated. Deep fry the coated eggplant at 375ºF. for 2 to 4 minutes until golden brown in color and soft. Place the fried eggplant on a few layers of paper towels to absorb excess oil. Stir fry the flavoring mixture in 2 TBS of cooking oil until it smells good, add the ground pork and fry until it is done. Add the sauce mixture, stir well and when the sauce turns clear, mix in the fried eggplant. Gently fold the eggplant into the sauce. Notes: To make a hotter dish a tsp or two of Szechuan hot sauce may be added to the sauce mixture, or a TBS of shredded fresh hot peppers may be stir fried along with the flavoring mixture. For those who prefer not to eat meat, 1/2 cup of shredded black mushrooms or fresh mushrooms may be substituted for the pork. If deep frying is a problem, another approach is to pan fry the eggplant patiently. Cover the wok while frying and sprinkle a few drops of water periodically to speed up the cooking. The eggplant can also be baked or steamed.

Posted to EAT-L Digest by "Pamela F. Wagner" <FanofPern@AOL.COM> on Jul 5, 1997