Spicy Szechuan Eggplant
with Rice, Pickled Cucumber, Peanuts & Sesame Seeds
- Sesame
- Soy
- Wheat
- Peanuts
Vegetarians and omnivores alike will love this takeout-style eggplant! You’ll sauté eggplant and scallions, then toss in a spicy-sweet glaze and serve over fluffy jasmine rice. Add a pile of crisp cucumber pickles on the side, then sprinkle with a crunchy toasted peanut and sesame seed garnish to bring it all together.
Ingredients
1 unit
Graffiti Eggplant
5 teaspoon
Rice Wine Vinegar
1 unit
Mini Cucumber
4 tablespoon
Sweet Soy Glaze
(Contains: Sesame, Soy, Wheat)
2 tablespoon
Szechuan Paste
(Contains: Sesame, Soy, Wheat)
1 tablespoon
Sesame Seeds
(Contains: Sesame)
2 unit
Scallions
¾ cup
Jasmine Rice
½ ounce
Peanuts
(Contains: Peanuts)
Not included in your delivery
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
2 tablespoon (tbsp)
Cooking Oil
½ teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
Wash and dry produce.
In a small pot, combine rice, 1¼ cups water (2¼ cups for 4 servings), and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a low simmer. Cook until rice is tender, 15-18 minutes.
Keep covered off heat until ready to serve.
While rice cooks, trim and halve cucumber lengthwise; thinly slice into half-moons. Trim and cut eggplant lengthwise into 1-inch-thick planks; lay flat and cut each plank lengthwise into 1-inch-wide pieces. Cut each piece crosswise into 2-inch pieces. Trim scallions; cut scallion whites into 1-inch pieces and thinly slice scallion greens.
In a small bowl, combine cucumber, vinegar, half the sesame seeds (you’ll use the rest later), ½ tsp sugar, and ¼ tsp salt (1 tsp sugar and ½ tsp salt for 4 servings).
Set aside to pickle, stirring occasionally.
Heat a large dry pan over medium-high heat. Add peanuts and toast, stirring occasionally, until golden and fragrant, 2-4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Heat 2 TBSP oil (4 TBSP for 4 servings) in pan used for peanuts over medium-high heat. Add eggplant and scallion whites; cook, flipping eggplant occasionally, until veggies are browned and eggplant is tender, 4-6 minutes. TIP: Eggplant will soak up the oil first and then begin to brown.
Reduce heat to low. Stir in ¼ cup water (½ cup for 4) and cook until eggplant is soft and water has reduced by half, 30-60 seconds more.
Turn off heat. Stir in sweet soy glaze and Szechuan paste until everything is evenly coated.
Fluff rice with a fork.
Divide rice between bowls and top with spicy Szechuan eggplant. Garnish with toasted peanuts, scallion greens, and remaining sesame seeds. Serve with pickled cucumber (draining first) on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the Szechuan flavors and sauce, though some found it too salty or sweet. Adjust seasoning to taste.
- Ease of prep: Some found eggplant tricky to cook; consider cutting smaller pieces and cooking longer for better texture.
- Suggestions: Add extra veggies like broccoli or carrots for more substance. Try adding tofu for protein 🍲.
- Portions: Several felt the dish needed more eggplant or additional vegetables to be filling enough as a main course.
- Texture: Opinions varied on eggplant texture; some enjoyed it tender, while others found it mushy or tough.
Reviews from our home cooks
I have not tried an eggplant recipe in a very long time and this was very good. I pay attention to nutrition content and liked that the fat content and the calories were low but the sodium was very high, I try to pick my recipes that don't have such a high sodium content, but I'm glad I decided to try this one in spite of that. The cucumber salad was a little too tart for me and I added a little more sugar, but in spite of that everything was great it looks simple enough that I could make it again at home and probably will.
There is a debate about whether to salt the eggplant before preparing it or not, and this recipe did not address that. Additionally, eggplant is prone to get mushy if stirred too much, so I think the directions need to be more clear about how to prep and prepare the eggplant for the best results. I chose not to salt the eggplant, but I did coat it in cornstarch to help it crisp up when frying it, and only flipped it every two minutes (for 6 minutes) while it fried in the pan. I was incredibly happy with how the dish turned out, but these tips and instructions were not part of the original recipe. I would encourage your team to consider editing the recipe to help make this dish more consistent for newer chefs.
Loved this! The crunchy peanuts, vinegary cukes, and Szechuan paste all worked well together.
The spice builds. I was surprised that the eggplant cooked so easily. The toasted peanuts were warming.
My first eggplant meal and it was delicious. The eggplant was tender and yummy. Good protein from the peanuts.
We added broccoli because it didn't seem like enough for a meal with just the eggplant. Tofu would be even better to add protein! The sauce was tasty but way too salty. We also added some chili sauce for spice.
I really like the sauce for this recipe, it was really delicious. Could use some protein in the meal though or maybe just a little more to it? I was still pretty hungry after eating this.
Sooooo good! We added asparagus for some crunch. Loved the eggplant.
Tasty but i think pickled ginger is a better fit than cucumber
Truly a stand out meal. I ate it all. I will be making this again!
