If you’re anything like me, you might go home from a restaurant and dream about a dish you’ve had that was simply, stunning. (Forgive my adjective but having just watched a double episode of MasterChef, I must have heard Gordon Ramsay use it to describe food at least 5 times). Recently, I dined at the uber chic Prime Ko with my mom to celebrate Mother’s Day. This is not something we do yearly, but my mom broached the idea, and since I love eating out (especially at upscale Japanese restaurants), I was more than happy to oblige. The food was so good, I’m thinking we should make it our thing.
My mom frequents restaurants pretty often, so she was quite familiar with Prime Ko’s menu. She highly recommended their eggplant dengaku, a roasted eggplant dish with a yuzu-sesame miso glaze. Her recommendation was spot on. The eggplant was so good, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The next day, I promptly googled “Dengaku sauce” and began my research for a copycat recipe. 4 eggplants and 2 bags of miso later, I hit the jackpot.
This was my first time working with Japanese ingredients like miso and sake. Miso is a fermented soybean paste mixed with rice or barley. The longer the miso is aged, the deeper the flavor. Young miso is white, light and sweet, while older miso is thick, dark and rich. Kosher miso is available through Eden Organics, ranging from Shiro and Genmai (light) to Mugi and hacho (dark). Miso lends an amazing depth of flavor to dishes, giving food an umami flavor that keeps you coming back for more.
Sake is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin that is made from fermented rice. It is also referred to as rice wine. While sake is used in Japanese cooking, it is also served as a chilled beverage from ceramic flasks called tokkuri. You may have seen it served in small cups (called choko) in some Asian restaurants.
Miso-Glazed Eggplant
1 eggplant
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp white miso
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sake
1 tbsp mirin
1 tsp sesame seeds
1/4 cup scallions, thinly sliced
Method:
Preheat oven to 400. Cut eggplant in half lengthwise. Using a small knife, score four or five diagonal cuts into the eggplant flesh, taking care not to cut through to the skin. Repeat at a 45-degree angle to get a diamond-shaped pattern. Brush the eggplant with sesame oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake, cut-size-up for 30 minutes. Remove the eggplant from the oven and turn it cut-side-down. Bake an additional 20 minutes.
While the eggplant is roasting, prepare the glaze. Put the miso, sugar, soy sauce, sake and mirin in a pan and bring to a simmer. Whisk the glaze and cook for several minutes, until thickened,
Remove eggplant from oven and turn cut-side-up. Brush the eggplant generously with miso glaze. Return to the oven and broil 3-5 minutes until caramelized.
Garnish the eggplant with sesame seeds and scallions. Serve immediately.
1 year ago: spaghetti squash with sauteed spinach & mushrooms
2 years ago: turkey & pastrami wrapped asparagus
So satisfying to eat something out and then get it right at home. Love when a new recipe works. These do, indeed, look stunning.
Love this kind of dish! The eggplant looks beautiful and those flavors are fantastic!
this looks beautiful! i’ve only been to prime ko once, i need to go back
This is my absolutely favorite Japanese appetizer. I can’t wait to try it. Loved your pictures
Where can I find Kosher Miso that is also Gluten-free? Sounds really yummy and looks good too.
You can find gluten free miso from Eden Organics (edenfoods.com)
Chanie – I just had eggplant for lunch! I season with EVOO S + P but this is a deliciously different idea for my mid day staple! Thanks for the inspiration and beautiful photos!
That is the most delicious looking eggplant I have ever seen.
That is some compliment, thank you!
These look and sound crazy amazing!! Cannot wait to try this!
This looks so good! I think I am going to get some eggplant today, this is a must try!
I love miso glaze on fish, but you have inspired me to try it on eggplant too. This sounds great.
I make something similar but the eggplant is thin sliced, it is amazing how well miso and eggplant go together.
This looks amazing! I’ve never roasted a whole eggplant before, how smart! And I love anything glazed.
If i want to do this dish for a catering event, do you have any recommendations for serving?
You say serve immediately and I’m sure it’s for good reason.
I’m thinking I would keep the finished product warm in a sterno…How do you think it would hold up? Very soggy?
Thanks for your input.
Hi Andy, I’m afraid the eggplant might turn soggy after sitting in a sterno for some time.
So if I wanted to serve this on shabbos, would I just leave it at room temp? Thanks
I would leave it on the hot plate so you can serve it warm.
Chanie,
Thanks for this recipe!
I’ve added it to the Farm Fresh Feasts Visual Recipe Index by Ingredient, a resource for folks like me who love to eat from the farm share.
I appreciate your help in making this index better!
Thanks so much for the recipe, I have made it and very much loved it :)
I have quite a bit of leftover sauce and no more eggplant (though none of us really enjoy eggplant anyway, just needed to use it from our CSA box) any ideas on how to use leftover sauce in different application?
Regarding the miso-glased eggplant recipe, which brand of sake is kosher?
I’m not sure offhand, I would need to check with my local kosher liquor store.
Hi can I use red miso for the recipe or is that a baddd idea?
You can, you might need a little extra sweetener to balance it out.