Eggplant and Tofu stir fry in Hoisin Sauce

While I was growing up, there used to be a children's program on Doordarshan about all vegetables. Eggplant here was famously coined as the Baingan Raja. As children we would love watching this serial, however the true message of the serial was not followed by me. It spoke about how all the veggies are equally important and that we must eat them all. I never really found this Baingan Raja very tasty as a child. I was more in the Aloo camp. My mom however made this one particular gravy dish with baingan in it, which I loved. Unfortunately I never took the recipe from her. So now I just don't know how to replicate it, rather I don't wish to. Anyways coming back to this dish that I made today. As I was chopping, I was only reminiscing about my childhood memories with this particular vegetable. In the past I have tried some variations with eggplant, so today I wanted to surprise my husband with an unexpected dish. I researched on the internet and found some interesting dishes to make. This particular one had to be made in Hoisin sauce which of course I didn't have. Thanks to the internet, there was a way to make it at home with some ingredients as a substitute which luckily I did have. So I decided to combine my husband's two favorite items - Tofu and Eggplants and stir fry them in hoisin sauce. I don't think this dish can be had with our Indian roti so I served it with some brown rice. You can try brown bread as well.



Ingredients:
200 gms firm Tofu cut in cubes (after draining out the water in it)
1 large eggplant cut in cubes
1 onion finely chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp red chilly powder
Salt and Basil leaves
Olive Oil


Ingredients for Hoisin Sauce substitute:
4 tsp Sesame oil
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp honey
4 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp pepper powder
1 tsp cornflour
1 tbsp Tabasco sauce
2 tsp peanut butter (optional)

Method:
In a small bowl, mix all of the above well and keep the hoisin sauce aside.
In a pan, add 1 tbsp olive oil and fry the tofu cubes till they turn golden. Keep them aside.
In a pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil, fry the garlic and onions till they are cooked. Now add the chilly powder, salt and eggplants. Cover with a lid and cook it till the eggplants become soft. Now add the hoisin sauce and tofu. Mix lightly. The sauce will thicken. Sprinkle some basil leaves for garnish. Your dish is now ready to be served. Enjoy Eggplant and Tofu stir fry along with some brown rice or bread.