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Sizzling Pork and Eggplant Hiyayakko

4.7

(22)

plater of pork and eggplant place over a blue towl
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime.

Hiyayakko is a Japanese warm-weather starter or side dish made of a small square of chilled silken tofu, a sprinkling of toppings, and saucy drizzles (think a heap of bonito flakes and puddle of soy sauce, or fresh tomatoes with ponzu). In this version the simple template goes family-style, with sliced silken tofu carefully shingled on a platter, topped with a savory ground pork and eggplant stir-fry. The combination of cold, custardy tofu and hot, saucy pork is exactly what I want on a summer weeknight, spooned into bowls and showered with tons of farmers market basil. —Kendra Vaculin

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What you’ll need

Recipe information

  • Yield

    4 servings

Ingredients

2

16-oz. packages silken tofu

3

Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided

2

medium Chinese or Japanese eggplant (about 8 oz. total), cut into 3"-long pieces, quartered lengthwise

1

lb. ground pork

2

red Thai chiles, thinly sliced

4

garlic cloves, finely grated

1

2" piece ginger, scrubbed, finely grated

1

Tbsp. sugar

1

Tbsp. fish sauce

4

Tbsp. soy sauce, divided

3

Tbsp. unseasoned rice vinegar, divided

Basil leaves (for serving)

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Wrap tofu in a few layers of paper towels to absorb moisture; place on a plate. Chill until ready to use.

    Step 2

    Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook eggplant, stirring occasionally, until slightly tender, 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

    Step 3

    Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in same skillet. Cook pork, breaking up meat, 1 minute. Add chiles, garlic, ginger, and sugar and cook, stirring and continuing to break up meat into small pieces, until pork is no longer pink and mixture is fragrant, about 4 minutes.

    Step 4

    Return eggplant to skillet; add fish sauce, 2 Tbsp. soy sauce, and 2 Tbsp. vinegar. Cook, stirring often, until liquid is mostly absorbed and eggplant is browned and tender, about 3 minutes. Add remaining 2 Tbsp. soy sauce and remaining 1 Tbsp. vinegar and cook, stirring, until mixture is slightly saucy, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

    Step 5

    Carefully unwrap tofu; slice crosswise ½”-thick. Shingle tofu on a platter. Spoon eggplant mixture over; top with basil.

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Reviews (22)

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  • We loved this and we've made it twice now. We like to increase the eggplant (and sauce) because it's so tasty - but it's great as is. Wonderful weeknight meal, especially for high protein diets!

    • Katie

    • Chattanooga, TN

    • 11/30/2023

  • This was delicious! Made half the recipe for two of us and super easy to halve. Didn't have basil but topped with scallions which did the trick. Great on a hot day.

    • Charlotte

    • Los Angeles, CA

    • 10/6/2023

  • This is awesome. Eating it on a hot Monday evening. Made as written except for used 16 oz of silken tofu - the two of us devoured it. Oh, I also used two red Fresno chiles instead of Thai chiles. And I used seasoned rice vinegar and just cut down a bit on the sugar. Mmmm good recipe.

    • Zann

    • Sacramento, CA

    • 7/26/2022

  • I used cauliflower instead of eggplant just because we don’t care for it. This recipe turned out great. Would make again.

    • Stephanie H

    • Chicago

    • 7/17/2022

  • Delicious, but the proportions were off. I used 16 oz of asian eggplant, 1/2 # pork and 1# silken tofu and served it over rice for a scant 4 servings. I cut the eggplant as directed, but cooked it in a 425 degree oven for 15 min on a parchment paper covered sheet pan instead of pan frying it. Next time, I will increase the EP for sure and perhaps the pork

    • CLou

    • Durham, NC

    • 7/16/2022

  • So delicious and so easy! Truly weeknight friendly and if you cook much Asian food at all you’ve got it on hand. We keep the grated ginger in the fridge or freezer, as well as the chopped garlic. It helps this come together beautifully. Add a little cooked rice or grain underneath and it’s delightful leftovers!

    • Betsy

    • Dallas

    • 6/21/2022

  • This was so delicious! Used standard globe eggplant because my grocery store didn't have the Chinese or Japanese varieties. I loved the balance of sweet and salty and thought it tasted restaurant quality... and that rarely happens in my kitchen! The tofu was a nice neutral flavor, and the leftovers were equally delicious over jasmine rice the next day.

    • SpatulaCity123

    • Los Angeles, CA

    • 6/11/2022