Grilled eggplant salad | yam makreua yao

Long green Thai eggplant is often available in Asian specialty shops. It is quite fleshy and, most importantly, it is not bitter. The nearest approximation is the purple Japanese eggplant. Don’t be tempted to use any other kind of eggplant when making this salad: it will be too pungent and bitter, since the dressing makes use of the flavourful juices from the grilled eggplants. This is an attractively smokey salad.

• 4 long green or Japanese eggplants
• 2 tablespoons mint leaves
• 3 red shallots, sliced
• 2 tablespoons, chopped spring (green) onion 
• Large pinch of roasted chilli powder
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce 
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground dried prawns (shrimp)

Grill the eggplants until charred and soft. Place in a bowl, cover until cool and then peel. Add all the other ingredients except the dried prawns to the bowl with the eggplants to combine. The salad should taste smokey, hot, and equally sour and salty. 

Arrange on a plate and sprinkle with ground dried prawns. 

Serve with steamed eggs. 

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