From theguardian.com
A sticky, soy-glazed, savoury upside-down tart for any day of the week
Savoury tarte tatin is one of my go-to meals when I’m entertaining: you can do a lot of the prep in advance, it isn’t too taxing and it delivers a decent level of wow factor when serving. This elegant, aubergine number is up there with the best of them, dressed with that much-loved combination of sticky sweet soy, peanuts and chilli. It is the perfect Easter centrepiece – an Easter egg(plant) showstopper, if you will.
Sticky aubergine, peanut and herb tarte tatin
The sugar in the base means the tart will set quite quickly once it’s out of the oven, so make sure to turn it out within a few minutes. In the worst-case scenario and it sets solid, just pop the pan on a low heat for a minute or two to soften the caramel again.
Prep 10 min
Cook 45 min
Serves 4
2 aubergines
3+ tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp caster sugar
5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
2 green chillies, finely sliced
1 bunch spring onions, trimmed
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
500g puff pastry
30g toasted peanuts
½ small bunch each of coriander and mint
Juice of 1 lime
Heat the oven to 220C (200 fan)/425F/gas 7. Trim the aubergines, peel off some of the skin in strips, then cut the flesh into 2½cm-thick slices.
Put a large, ovenproof frying pan on a medium heat, add three tablespoons of oil and fry the slices, in batches if need be, for about three minutes on each side, until lightly browned; add more oil if needed.
While the aubergine is frying, whisk the rice vinegar, soy, sugar, ginger and half the chilli in a small bowl. Cut the spring onions into 2-3cm lengths, and set aside a few of the green ends for garnish.
When the aubergine is cooked, add the sliced spring onions and garlic to the pan, stir-fry for two minutes, then pour in all the soy and vinegar mixture. Bring to a bubble, simmer for a couple of minutes more, until reduced and sticky, then take off the heat.
Roll out the puff pastry so it’s a bit larger than the frying pan, drape this over the top of the aubergine mixture and tuck it in neatly around the sides. Prick all over with a fork, then bake for 25-30 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the aubergine mix is bubbling up around the edges. Remove, leave to rest for two minutes, then carefully turn out on to a board.
Finely slice the reserved spring onion greens, and roughly chop the peanuts, coriander and mint. Toss these with the remaining chopped chilli and lime juice, sprinkle all over the top of the tart, then slice and serve.
Photograph: Louise Hagger/Photography: Louise Hagger. Food styling: Emily Kydd. Prop styling: Jennifer Kay. Food styling assistant: Kristine Jakobsson
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