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One of the most popular vegetable dishes in Sichuan cooking is fish-fragrant eggplant. The sauce itself does not actually contain, taste or smell like fish. Rather, the name refers to a method of preparation usually associated with fish in Sichuan cuisines that results in hot, sour, salty and sweet flavours all combining on the plate.

The mix of flour and water is like a tempura batter and can stay crispy for quite some time.

Ingredients

For eggplant

1 medium-size eggplant, peeled and cut into 8cm x 2 cm strips

fine salt

Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

Corn flour (for dusting)

For batter

200ml water

100g tapioca starch

100g rice flour

1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt

For fish-fragrant dressing

Chilli bean sauce x 1 tablespoon

White sugar x 3 tablespoon

Rice wine vinegar x 100ml

Black vinegar x 40ml

Ginger chopped x 1 teaspoon

Garlic chopped x 1 teaspoon

Vegetable oil x 30ml

Pickled green chilli chopped x 1 tablespoon

To Serve

1 spring onion, finely sliced

Sichuan pepper x 1 tablespoon

Salt the eggplant

Place the eggplant strips in a colander set over a plate and sprinkle lightly with salt. Leave for 30 minutes to draw out moisture, then rinse and pat dry with paper towel.

Make the batter

Whisk all the ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth.

Make the dressing

Gently toast the Sichuan pepper in a pan until fragrant and grind to a fine powder (save for garnish later).

Gently fry the chilli bean, pickled chilli, garlic and ginger in vegetable oil until the oil is red and fragrant

Add sugar and fry for 20 seconds and then add both vinegars.

Reduce gently until sauce thickens enough to coat the eggplant.

Taste and add sugar if too salty/sour or add vinegar if too sweet

Cook the eggplant

Heat the deep-frying oil to 180°C.

Working in batches, lightly coat the eggplant strips in corn flour then the tempiura-like batter, then place, one at a time, in the hot oil and deep-fry for 4 minutes, or until golden and VERY crispy. Drain on paper towel.

To Serve

Transfer the deep-fried eggplant to a bowl with the dressing and gently toss together, then arrange on a serving plate. Scatter over the spring onion and sprinkle Sichuan pepper to taste and serve.

Spice Temple's chefs spoke to Good Food's Jane Holroyd.