Chinese Eggplant with Ground Meat

Delicious Asian dinner in about half an hour
Source: Salu-salo

Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5)

Ingredients:
- 1/2 lb ground turkey
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 1/2 lbs eggplant or Chinese eggplant 1 ½ lbs. Chinese eggplants, ends trimmed and cut on the diagonal into ½-inch slices
- 3 tbsp canola oil
- 8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbsp water
For the sauce:
- 1 cup chicken stock (or 1 cup of chicken flavored Better than Bullion dissolved in 1 cup of hot water)
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp of sambal oelek or sriracha (or up to 2 tbsp for a spicy version)
- 1 tsp sesame oil
Total: 6 servings

Directions:
1. Trim the eggplants and cut into 1/2 inch slices.
2. Combine the turkey with soy sauce and let stand for 10 minutes.
3. In another bowl, combine all sauce ingredients. Set aside.
4. Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add garlic and cook for 10 to 15 seconds.
5. Add the turkey and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
6. Add the eggplants and the sauce and stir to mix well. Reduced the heat to medium, cover for about 10 minutes or until eggplants are tender.
7. Add cornstarch solution and cook, stirring until sauce thickens. Serve with steamed rice or cauliflower rice.

Afterthoughts:
This is a really delicious simple recipe and it works with any kind of meat: pork, beef, chicken, turkey. Might even work with ground tofu?! ;-)