Sorry, strawberries. Apologies, squash. Ichiban eggplant is at the top of my summer seasonal produce list. Sad that eggplant is a phallic symbol now, but putting that aside, wouldn’t you say ichibans are pretty unique? I mean, it’s purple and spongy! And it’s so cheap when it’s in season. I remember one summer when I was able to buy a pound of them for 75 cents! Bargain hunters, rejoice!
I didn’t start eating eggplant until I was dating a guy who was vegan. His go-to Panda Express entree was eggplant tofu. I didn’t even know eggplant tofu was even an entree option until I met him! As a blossoming lad, I was willing to give things a try. Panda’s eggplant tofu was so good, but I was confident we can make our own version at home.
This eggplant tofu recipe is no Panda Express recipe, but it’s packed with flavor minus the grease. It’s been on repeat during the summer over the years, but now, I air-fry the tofu for extra crispiness and texture instead of using packaged fried tofu. It’s not vegan, but you can easily replace the oyster sauce with a vegetarian version to make it so. And it’s not a rigid one-pan recipe. Watch your veggies, follow your intuition and season accordingly.
If you like this Eggplant Tofu recipe, give these a try:
Lemongrass Tofu
Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐)
Eggplant Tofu
- Yield: 3 1x
- Category: Mains
- Method: Stir Fry
- Cuisine: Chinese
Description
This isn’t a Panda Express copycat but it’s packed with familiar Asian flavors minus the grease. A recipe on my summer rotation list year after year!
Ingredients
- 5 to 6 small or 2 long ichiban eggplants, cut into large bite-size pieces
- 1 green or red bell pepper, cut into large bite-size pieces
- 1 small white onion, cut into large bite-size pieces
- 4 cloves of garlic, pressed
- Salt
- 1 box of firm tofu, cut into cubes, air-fried
- Small handful of cilantro, coarsely chopped
- White pepper
- Chili oil
- Neutral-flavored cooking oil
SAUCE
- 4 tablespoons of oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon of chili garlic sauce
- 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon of sugar
Instructions
- Create the sauce. Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl.
- Pan-fry the eggplant. Preheat a thick-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of oil into the pan and add the eggplant.* Flip the pieces every minute, 4 to 5 minutes. Scoop into a large bowl and set aside.
- Cook the rest of the veggies. Add 2 more tablespoons of oil into the pan. Add the bell pepper, white onion and garlic. Stir-fry until the onion is somewhat translucent, 3 minutes or so. Season the veggies with a little bit of salt.
- Dress it up. Add the air-fried tofu, sauce, cilantro and eggplant into the pan, season with some white pepper, drizzle with some chili oil, and mix, mix, mix for 1 more minute. Turn off heat and dish up! It goes well with a hot bowl of rice!
Notes
*Don’t overcrowd the eggplant. Give each piece the opportunity to brown. If necessary, cook some pieces in another batch.
