Rukmini Iyer's Korean-Style Aubergines With Spring Onions & Sesame Rice
By Rukmini Iyer
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15 minutes prep time
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30 minutes cook time
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Easy
In the traditional Korean dish, aubergines are steamed for just 7 minutes before you gently stir in the red pepper and sesame dressing. In this version, I let the oven steam the aubergines, while fresh basmati rice and cabbage cook underneath for a simple and filling all-in-one dish. Gochugaru, or Korean red pepper flakes, are available here – they really make the dish, and once you have a jar, you’ll find yourself scattering the flakes on everything (scrambled eggs are my favourite).
This recipe is extracted from The Roasting Tin Around the World – Global One Dish Dinners by Rukmini Iyer (Square Peg). Photography © David Loftus
Ingredients for Korean-style aubergines with spring onions & sesame rice Serves: 4
- 200g basmati rice, rinsed
- 2 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
- 2 leeks, or 1 small Chinese cabbage, thinly sliced
- 400ml vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 aubergines, cut into 1 1⁄2 cm slices
- 1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
- 3 fat spring onions, very thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Ingredients for dressing
- 15g Korean red pepper flakes (gochugaru)
- 30ml sesame oil
- 30ml rice vinegar
- 30ml soy sauce
- 5cm ginger, grated
- 1 clove of garlic, finely grated
Method for Korean-style aubergines with spring onions & sesame rice
- Preheat the oven to 210°C fan/230°C/gas 8.
- Tip the rice and garlic into a wide lidded casserole dish or a medium roasting tin, then evenly cover with the sliced leeks or Chinese cabbage. Pour over the vegetable stock and sesame oil, then lay the aubergines over the top in one layer. Scatter over the sea salt, cover with the lid or very tightly with foil (this is important or the rice won’t cook properly), then transfer to the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix the dressing ingredients together. As soon as you take the tin out of the oven, remove the lid or foil and dress the aubergines with the red pepper dressing.
- Scatter over the spring onions and sesame seeds and serve hot.
About the author
Rukmini Iyer is the bestselling author of The Roasting Tin Series selling over a a million copies to date (The Roasting Tin; The Green Roasting Tin and The Quick Roasting Tin). She is a recipe writer, food stylist and formerly a lawyer. She loves creating delicious and easy recipes with minimum fuss and maximum flavour. Follow her on Instagram at @missminifer for more recipes and tips.
