Breaded eggplant with panko breadcrumbs, katsu-style japanese curry but vegetarian

Ingredients

Roasted eggplant:

• 1 eggplant
• 1 tsp. olive oil

Breadcrumbs:

• 1/4 cup flour (+/-)
• 1 egg
• salt
• pepper
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs (+/-)
• Oil (for frying)

Sushi rice (accompaniment):

• 7 oz/200 gr sushi rice
• 7.4 fl oz/210 ml water
• 0.8 fl oz/25 ml rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar

Curry (accompaniment):

• 1 oz/30 gr Japanese curry (Golden Curry type) (+/-)
• 7 fl oz/20 cl water (+/-)

Toppings / decoration (optional):

• spring onion / chives
• sesame seeds

Materials

• freezer bag / airtight box
• parchment paper
• paper towel
• fork

Preparation

• Roast eggplant:
  Place eggplant on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Prick with a fork and brush with a little olive oil.
• Bake at 450°F/230°C for 20 minutes, turning if necessary.
  
• Remove from oven and place in a sealed freezer bag or airtight box for at least 10 minutes.
• Peel the eggplant: the skin should now peel off more easily.
  
• Bread the eggplant:
  Squeeze out excess water and flatten as much as possible.
  Dip in flour to coat.
• Mix the egg, salt and pepper and dip the eggplant in it.
  
• Then dip in the panko breadcrumbs and coat well.
• Dip again in egg, then in breadcrumbs. The eggplant is ready to fry.
  
• Heat oil in a frying pan. When the oil is hot, dip the breaded eggplant into it.
• Turn out when golden brown.
  
• When both sides are golden brown, place the breaded eggplant on paper towels to remove excess oil.
• Prepare the rice:
  Wash and cook the rice as usual (we explain everything step by step in our poké bowl recipe ;-) ).
  
• Heat the rice vinegar and add the salt and sugar. Stir well to dissolve.
  When the rice is cooked and still hot, pour in the vinegar mixture and stir well.
• Prepare the curry:
  Boil the water and place the curry block in it. Stir: the block will dissolve and the sauce will thicken.
  *Add water if necessary. Remove the pan from the heat when the desired consistency is reached.
  
• Cut breaded eggplant into strips.
• Arrange on plates:
  Place the rice in the bottom of the soup plates, cover with curry sauce.
  
• Place breaded eggplant strips on top. Top with chopped spring onion and sesame seeds (optional) for decoration.
• And it's ready!
  

Observations

What are panko breadcrumbs?
These are Japanese breadcrumbs. You can find it in Asian grocery stores or in some supermarkets in the "world products" section. You can replace it with classic breadcrumbs or make our easy recipe here: panko breadcrumbs.

What is Japanese curry?
Japanese curry is sold in supermarkets as a roux to be diluted. The same roux you'd use for a béchamel sauce! It's much more convenient to buy it as a packet than to make it yourself, as it contains many spices. You can add more or less water depending on the texture of the sauce you want.
Japanese curry roux can be found in Asian grocery stores or in some supermarkets "world products" section. You'll often find it here under the brand name "Golden Curry S&B", in several varieties: non-spicy, mildly spicy and spicy.

How do I spice up my dish?
You can add vegetables that you simmer in the curry sauce. You can also decorate the plate with spring onion, or chives and sesame seeds. This is optional, but will serve to decorate the dish. Japanese curry is usually eaten on its own.

I want to prepare breaded eggplant in advance, how do I do it?
You can prepare it in advance and even prepare several!
Fridge storage: Place cooled breaded eggplant in an airtight container and store for up to 5 days.
Freezer storage: Place cooled breaded eggplant in a freezer bag and store for up to 1 month.
Oven reheating: Place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and reheat for 8-10 min in an oven preheated to 350°F/180°C. If from the freezer, defrost first or adjust time.
Reheat in a frying pan: Reheat in a frying pan over medium heat for 4 min on each side without adding fat. Defrost beforehand if from the freezer, or adjust cooking time.
Reheat in Air Fryer: Line tray with parchment paper (optional) and place breaded eggplant on top. Reheat for 8 minutes at 350°F/180°C in Air Fry mode.

Cookware

Attributes

Questions

Photos of members who cooked this recipe