Dried Eggplant Fruit

Dried Eggplant Fruit

　　1. Select large, fresh eggplants, wash them, steam until cooked, cut them in half lengthwise, flatten them, spread salt on the surface, and sun-dry them until they become dried eggplants.

2. Grind glutinous rice into powder, or use store-bought glutinous rice flour. Finely chop garlic and red chili peppers, then mix them with brown sugar (rock sugar can also be used), salt, monosodium glutamate, soy sauce, and other ingredients in the glutinous rice flour. Stir well, then cook in a pot, remove from heat, stir into a paste, let it cool, and set aside for later use.

3. Cook the dried eggplants together with brown sugar (or rock sugar) in a pot to allow the sugar flavor to penetrate the eggplant skin. Once done, remove them and they can then be wrapped with the sauce that has already cooled.

4. Spread the sauce between two pieces of eggplant skin, smooth it out, press firmly, and sun-dry for several days. Then steam them briefly, let them dry slightly, and store them in clean, dry jars or pots for later consumption. The taste of the final product may vary even when using the same method, depending on factors such as the heat control during cooking the eggplant skin and making the sauce, and the ratio of glutinous rice flour used.

Wash the eggplants, dry off the water, and then salt them and let them sit for one day. Slightly dry off the water released due to the salt, then add licorice powder and a small amount of sugar. The resulting dried eggplants should be chewy and flavorful, with a unique taste. They can be eaten as a snack or directly sun-dried and later used in stews or stir-fries.