On Cuisine

Recipe - Aubergine With Sweet Miso

This dish, Nasu Dengaku in Japanese restaurants, was commonly deep fried, so I attempted to approximate the taste with a version baked. Now I find several Japanese versions which grill or broil. The Japanese fruit is slender, ours is generally the ovoid Mediterranean, for which baking is more effective than grilling.

Aubergine, oil, torn basil, torn tarragon, crushed black pepper, mirin, garlic, miso paste, honey.

Halve the aubergine lengthways. Score the cut surface very deeply, but not through, with a slender knife, crosshatch. This will allow oil to penetrate for baking. Place, flat side up, in a supportively shaped baking dish to hold horizontal.

Sprinkle with chopped garlic, black pepper and the herbs. Pour oil into the scoring, all over; it will accept a great deal of oil. Bake at 200C for a half hour.

Mix miso paste, say a large tablespoon for the two halves, with an equal amount of honey. Fold in mirin. Spread over the flat surface; grill for a further 10 minutes.