Nasu Dengaku {Miso Eggplant}
Nasu Dengaku, or miso-glazed eggplant, is a dish that balances rich umami with a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture. In just under 30 minutes, you can create a dish that feels both indulgent and wholesome, perfect for a quick yet impressive meal.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- japanese or chinese eggplant
- a little bit olive oil
- chopped scallions
- sesame seeds
for the glaze
- ¼ cup white or yellow miso paste
- ¼ cup mirin
- ¼ cup organic cane sugar sometimes I use a bit less
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Slice your eggplant in half, arrange on a baking sheet and gently score the surface of the flesh.
- Brush with a little bit of olive oil and pre-bake your eggplant for a few minutes until the flesh starts to become tender. (8 mintues or so, depending on the size of your eggplant).
- Remove eggplant from the oven and turn your oven temp to "broil."
- Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a small saucepan, combine the miso, mirin and sugar and bring to a gentle simmer.
- Whisk continuously until the sugar has dissolved and the glaze starts to thicken (2 minutes or so - barely bubbling).
- Remove from heat and let it cool (and continue to thicken) for a few minutes.
- Note - if you taste it at this point, it'll seem VERY salty - it will sweeten once the sugars caramelize on the eggplant under the broiler.
- Liberally brush the glaze onto the eggplant.
- Broil until brown & bubbling (about 5-8 minutes). The amount of time will vary depending on the size of your eggplant and the strength of your broiler. Check after about 3 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and garnish with chopped scallions and sesame seeds.
- If your eggplants are larger with tougher skin, scoop and eat just the flesh. These (pictured) were tiny and tender enough to eat with the skin.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!