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Side Dish
Asian
4 servings
45 minutes
15 minutes
8 Japanese eggplants
2 tablespoons corn oil or canola oil
6 large Napa cabbage leaves
1 large organic spinach
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce (preferably whole bean)
1 1/2 tablespoons ginger juice (squeezed from grated fresh organic ginger)
1 tablespoon organic ginger root, grated
Pierce the eggplants in a few places and brush lightly with oil.
Grill the eggplants until the skins are charred evenly. Remove from the fire and place in a brown paper bag, then close tightly.
Allow them to steam for a minute or two then remove from the bag.
Pull off the skins, allowing some of the blackness to remain on the flesh.
Wash the cabbage and spinach. Remove the stems from the spinach.
Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
Plunge the cabbage leaves in the boiling water for a brief moment, until the leaves start to change color and go slightly limp.
Remove the cabbage and plunge into a bowl of ice water, stirring to cool quickly and preserve the color.
Remove the cabbage from the water and drain. Repeat this process with the spinach.
Soften the leaves of the cabbage with the back of a flat bladed knife.
Place the cabbage leaves, one overlapping another, on a bamboo rolling mat with the thicker ends of each leaf at an outer end of the mat.
Place the spinach on top of the cabbage, starting about 1 inch from the edge closest to you.
Using the mat, roll the leaves into a cylinder then remove the mat.
Cut the roll into 3/4 inch disks. In the bottom of each of 4 small bowls, lay 2-3 slices of the cabbage rolls, angling them one atop another for visual effect.
Lay 2 eggplants on top. Sprinkle with the soy sauce and ginger juice, and garnish with small pieces of grated ginger to taste.
