Easy Chinese Eggplant Recipe

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This Easy Chinese Eggplant recipe features tender, umami-rich eggplant soaked in a Sichuan-style spicy garlic sauce. It's one of the most famous Sichuan dishes. Ready in less than an hour!

Can't get enough of spicy Chinese dishes? Try my Chicken Mapo Tofu next! Or, if you want to try another eggplant dish, check out my Aubergine Katsu Curry.

My family is from Sichuan, so I grew up eating a lot of Szechuan food. One of our favorite dishes was Chinese eggplant simmered in a spicy garlic sauce. The dish is known as Fish Fragrant Eggplant or Yu Xiang Eggplant. "Fish Fragrant" refers to the flavor combination used in the dish. It consists of pickled chili paste, ginger, garlic, scallions, sugar, and vinegar and can be used in hot and cold dishes. Despite its name, fish is rarely involved in preparing Fish Fragrant dishes. The term is thought to have come from the sauce's use in local fish cooking.

This recipe is heavily influenced by Fuchsia Dunlop's "The Food of Sichuan," one of the most authoritative books on Sichuanese-style cooking.

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🥄 What is it?
🧂 Ingredients
🔪 Instructions
💭 Top Tips
👩🏻‍🍳 Substitutions
👨🏻‍🍳 Add-ons
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
📖 Recipe FAQs
🍽 Looking for more Chinese recipes?
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🥄 What is it?

Chinese Eggplant with spicy garlic sauce is a Sichuan classic that combines deep-fried eggplant with a spicy sauce made of pickled chilis, chili bean sauce, garlic, ginger, and scallions. The sauce has a fiery red color and is sweet, sour, and spicy. It's a visually stunning dish that goes best with simple sides like steaming hot rice, grilled meat, or vibrant Chinese greens.

🧂 Ingredients

Eggplant - Use Chinese or Japanese eggplants for the most authentic dish.
Cornstarch - Used for dredging the eggplant before deep-frying and to thicken the sauce
Oil - We need ¼ of a cup to fry the chili bean sauce and aromatics. It might seem like a lot, but that amount is necessary to draw out the delicious flavors of the ingredients above.
Chili bean sauce - also known as doubanjiang, Chinese/Sichuan chili bean paste, or spicy bean sauce. It's a deeply savory, fermented Chinese sauce popular in Sichuan cuisine. You can find this in most Chinese grocery stores.
Garlic - Freshly minced for the best flavor.
Ginger - Freshly minced for the best flavor.
Scallion - Separated into green and white parts. The whites will be used to flavor the oil, and the greens will be used to add color and freshness at the end.
Chicken stock (or any other stock or water) - Gives the sauce body and dilutes the intensely aromatic flavor base. Try my Homemade chicken stock recipe.
Sugar - To balance the spicy, sour, and savory flavors.
Soy sauce - Provides umami, saltiness, and color.
Chinkiang vinegar - A Chinese-style vinegar with fruity, smoky, and caramel notes.

🔪 Instructions

Step 1. Soak Eggplant

In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of salt and 4 cups of water. Mix thoroughly before adding the eggplant. Place a place or lid on top and press down to ensure that all of the eggplant pieces are submerged in water. Allow it to rest for 15 minutes. During this time, the eggplant flesh will relax, preventing excess oil from being absorbed in the frying step.

Step 2. Toss eggplant with starch

eggplants tossed with cornstarch in bowl

Drain the salty water, then fill it with water to rinse the eggplant before draining it. Add ½ cup of cornstarch to the bowl and toss to coat each piece evenly.

Step 3. Deep-fry eggplant

To fry the eggplant, heat 1 inch of oil to 350°F in a Dutch oven, fryer, or wok. Fry the eggplant in batches for 3-4 minutes, flipping and turning occasionally to ensure even cooking. The skin should be slightly wrinkled, and the flesh should be golden brown.

Transfer it to a paper towel-lined plate to dry and absorb excess oil.

Step 4. Make sauce

Heat your wok or a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Pour in the oil and swirl it around the wok. Add the chili bean sauce and cook for 3 minutes until the oil is red and fragrant.

Increase the heat to medium, add the ginger, garlic, and scallion whites, and fry for 1 minute.

Add chicken stock, sugar, soy sauce, Chinkiang vinegar, and bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.

Step 5. Add eggplant

Add the fried eggplant and simmer for 1 minute to allow the eggplant to absorb the sauce.

Step 6. Add Slurry & Finish

eggplants simmering in thickened sauce in wok

Mix the cornstarch mixture, then gently stir it into the sauce to thicken it. Sprinkle scallion greens on top and serve the Chinese Eggplant immediately.

💭 Top Tips

Choose slightly firm but not hard eggplants. They should have a smooth and shiny surface.
Use medium-low heat when frying the chili bean sauce. We want to gently bring out the flavors without splattering sauce all over the place.
Don't overcrowd the pot when frying the eggplant. If you add too much eggplant, the oil temperature may drop too much, causing the eggplant to absorb more oil. Fry in several small batches.

👩🏻‍🍳 Substitutions

Chili bean sauce - Substitute it with chili garlic sauce or chopped pickled Chinese chiles.
Chinkiang vinegar - Substitute it with rice wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar.
Soy sauce - Substitute it with tamari or Coconut aminos for a gluten-free option.
Sugar - Substitute it with other sweeteners like brown sugar, rock sugar, honey, maltose, corn syrup, or even maple syrup. You'll have to play around with the exact measurements.

👨🏻‍🍳 Add-ons

Although I believe this base recipe is good enough as is, you can add additional garnishes to bring more flavor. Try adding toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds, Sichuan pepper, or chili flakes to taste.

🥡 Storage & Leftovers

Storing: Allow the leftover Chinese Eggplant to cool to room temperature before storing it. Refrigerate the cooled eggplant for up to 3 days in an airtight container, but keep in mind that the sauce will continue to penetrate the eggplant, so it'll be pretty flavorful.

Reheating: When ready to eat, reheat the leftover eggplant in a saucepan with 2 tablespoons of water over medium heat until heated. Stir occasionally to ensure even heating. You can also microwave it for a few minutes until thoroughly heated.

Make ahead: Leftovers can be frozen in an airtight freezer container for up to 1 month. Remember that the texture of the eggplant will change when frozen. It'll become softer and mushier.

📖 Recipe FAQs

What type of eggplant is best for fish fragrant eggplant?

Authentic fish-fragrant eggplant is typically made with Chinese or Japanese eggplants. These eggplants are longer and thinner than their American counterparts (globe eggplants). They're sweeter, have a milder flavor, and contain fewer seeds, making them less bitter and fuller in texture.

You can use American eggplants in a pinch and still make a delicious dish.

What is chili bean sauce?

Chili bean sauce is a Chinese sauce made with fermented broad beans, chilis, and various other seasonings. It's also known as doubanjiang, Chinese/Sichuan chili bean paste, spicy bean sauce, or broad bean paste. It's a popular condiment that originated in Sichuan cooking but has since spread throughout China. It has a spicy, savory, and slightly sweet flavor profile. Typically, it's sautéed in oil to bring out its flavors before being combined with other ingredients.

Can I add meat?

Traditionally, Sichuan eggplant is not made with any meat aside from chicken stock, which also is totally optional. If desired, add minced pork, beef, or chicken after frying the chiili bean sauce and aromatics (garlic, ginger, scallions). Fry the meat until it's no longer pink before adding the rest of the ingredients.

Do I have to fry the eggplant?

Yes, frying the eggplant is an important step. The frying step is what gives the eggplant its buttery texture. The cornstarch adds a crisp coating that contrasts with the buttery texture.

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