[RECIPE IN SHOW NOTES] 

Japanese cooking can be a little intimidating but Nasu no Dengaku is achievable! Trust me! Just remember: a timer is your FRIEND when you’re cooking your eggplants, use your powers of observation, and make a glaze using my recipe below. 

Want more food tips? Check out the 5 Minute Food Fix Instagram. 

Recipe 

Ingredients  

4 medium eggplants, halved 

2 tbs mirin (a sweet Japanese cooking rice wine) 

2 tbs saké 

1 tbs sugar 

2 tbs "white" miso paste 

Method 

1. If you have a BBQ, turn on your BBQ. Otherwise, heat up your grill hot plate.  

1. While the oven is heating up, prepare the eggplant. Cut in half lengthways. If you want to be really fancy, you can use a knife to score the flesh, creating a crosshatch patten. Brush the eggplant in olive or grapeseed oil and season with a little salt. Start skin side down and barbeque for eight minutes (set you timer!) Then, flip it over and keep it covered for another eight minutes.  

1. While the eggplant is cooking, mix together the ingredients for the glaze and set aside until needed (you can make this in advance if you have a tendency towards distraction).  

1. When the eggplant is looking cooked, and close to being down, flip it back to skin side down and brush the glaze over the cut side of the eggplant then give it another 3 minutes.  

1. To serve, sprinkle with sesame seeds. Oiishii!