From theguardian.com
Aubergine boats filled with a sweet and savoury mix of sticky rice, mushrooms, chestnuts, ginger and chives
Today’s recipe is loosely inspired by lo mai gai, a Cantonese dish of sticky rice with chicken that also often features dried mushrooms, Chinese sausage and dried prawns. In this version, aubergines are halved and roasted, then the flesh is added to a sweet, savoury and slightly spicy mix of sticky rice, dried mushrooms, chestnuts, ginger and chives. The rice is then stuffed back into aubergine skins and baked until it’s deliciously sticky on the inside and crisp on the outside. Incredibly flavourful and, dare I say, meaty, this dish is well worth the effort, I promise.
Sticky rice-stuffed aubergines
I use Thai Taste sticky rice, which needs only two hours of pre-soaking in order to cook through inside the aubergines. If you have another brand, check the packet, because the rice may well need an overnight soak.
Prep 15 min
Soak 2 hr+
Cook 2 hr
Serves 4
4 medium aubergines (about 250g each), cut in half lengthways
10 tbsp olive oil
Fine salt and black pepper
Chiu chow oil, or crispy chilli oil, to finish
1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve
For the rice mix
400g Thai sticky rice (aka glutinous rice) – I use Thai Taste
30g dried wild mushrooms
120g ready-cooked and peeled chestnuts, finely chopped
15g fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
20g chives, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated or crushed
3½ tbsp maple syrup
4 tbsp soy sauce
20g sriracha, or less, to taste
For the spring onion salad
20g spring onions, julienned
½ cucumber, halved lengthways, deseeded and finely sliced at an angle
10g coriander leaves
1 fresh jalapeño chilli, sliced into thin rounds (optional)
1 tbsp lime juice
Heat the oven to 240C (220C fan)/475F/gas 9. Put the rice in a bowl, add cold water to cover, then leave to soak for two hours, or overnight (see recipe introduction).
Cut cross-hatches into the flesh of each aubergine half, cutting about three-quarters of the way down into the flesh, taking care not to puncture the skin and leaving a ½cm border around the edges. Lay the aubergines cut side up on a large, flat baking tray.
In a small bowl, mix four tablespoons of the olive oil and a teaspoon of fine salt, then rub this mix all over the cut sides of the aubergines. Bake in the hot oven for 35-40 minutes, turning the tray once halfway, until very well browned, then remove and leave to cool.
While the aubergines are baking, put the dried mushrooms in a small bowl, cover with just-boiled water and leave to soak for 15 minutes.
Turn down the oven to 210C (190C fan)/410F/gas 6½. In a medium bowl, combine the chestnuts, ginger, chives, garlic, remaining six tablespoons of olive oil, maple syrup, soy sauce, sriracha, a teaspoon of fine salt and lots of pepper – I used about 30 twists of the grinder. Drain and finely chop the mushrooms, then add them to the chestnut bowl. Scoop the flesh from the cooked aubergines into the bowl, taking care not to tear the skins.
Drain the soaked rice, add that to the bowl, too, then mix well to combine.
Lay the scooped-out aubergine skins in a 33cm x 26cm high-sided baking tray. Fill each half with an eighth of the rice mix, then drizzle a tablespoon of water evenly over each one. Drizzle with a little more olive oil, cover very tightly with foil, so no steam can escape, and bake for an hour. Remove the foil, bake uncovered for five minutes more, then remove and leave to rest and cool for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the salad: in a small bowl, mix the spring onions, cucumber, coriander, jalapeño, lime juice and a good pinch of salt. Transfer the aubergines to a platter or individual plates, top with some salad, then drizzle over some chilli oil to taste and serve with lime wedges on the side.
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