Think about it. It’s cheap. It has a distinct taste. It’s not meat. and man, it’s violet!

1. tempura style– dip it in egg, coat in bread crumbs, deep fry, serve with radish & ginger sauce

   

1. fried – slice, deep fry, serve with soy sauce and calamansi
2. tortang talong – flame-grill, peel off skin, stir in scrambled egg, fry, serve with ketchup
3. ensaladang talong – chop flame grilled eggplant, green mango, red onions, tomatoes, stir in bagoong (optional sugar and vinegar)
4. grilled – slice, brush with olive oil, grill, serve with greens as a topping for salad

Tempura style will always be great with carrots, sweet potatoes, zucchini, crabstick and shrimp. Fried eggplant is already good on its own but if you really have to, you can pair it with liempo or other kinds of fried meat. Some people put in ground beef or pork for their torta but usually I enjoy it plain. Any kind of ensalada would be good for grilled meat, chicken and seafood. Finally, grilling eggplants the Mediterranean way is another twist to the very basic talong.

Enjoy variety in your menu. Mix and match it with other meats and vegetables. It’s gonna be great! I do hope pictures will follow! and do tell me about your little experiments so we get to have more fun.