Nasu no hibari-ae / sauteed eggplant with mashed fava beans

Easy, pretty, tasty and filling. This simple Japanese dish knows no border and goes well with any cuisine!

1/2 of recipe:
95 calories; 5.3 g protein; 3.6 g fat; 10.9 g carbohydrate; 8.0 g net carbs; 92 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol; 2.9 g fiber

<Ingredients>

2 nasu Japanese or 1 medium/small (150-170 g) Chinese eggplant (226 g Chinese eggplant in photo; 3/4 used in this dish and remainder in another dish)
Handful soramame fava beans (28 beans/82 g with inner skin in photo)
1 tsp shiokoji salted rice malt
1/4 tsp tahini
1 tsp dashi (not in photo)

<Directions>
1.

Cut eggplant lengthwise in half, and diagonally slice into 7-8 mm thick pieces.

2.

Heat sesame oil, and saute eggplant on medium high heat.

Flip, cover, lower heat somewhat, and cook until done.

3.

Meanwhile, blanch fava beans for 3-4 minutes, and drain.

When cool enough, peel off skin, and place in a mixing bowl.

4.

Mash fava beans.
Add shiokoji and tahini, and mix well.

Add dashi, and make a moist chunky paste. 

5.

Add eggplant, and mix well.

Ready to serve.

<Notes>

• If fava beans are soft and very moist, adding dashi is optional. If dashi is not available, add water.
• The texture of mashed fava beans can either be creamy or chunky.
• Whether or not to slice eggplant into rounds or oblong pieces or to dice is up to you.
• Tahini is added to create a rich note, but it is optional. Thick soy milk or mild cream cheese such as mascarpone would be a good option for the same effect.
• Eggplant is often deep-fried for a brighter skin color.
• Hibari-ae is a general term for dishes featuring another ingredient that is mixed with mashed fava beans. The main ingredients are typically vegetables in season or seafood (shrimp, calamari).
• Hibari literally means lark. The bird starts to sing when fava beans start to appear in the market and grocery stores in Japan.