Sweet and sour eggplant

The beauty of this version is that it can be made without any special Chinese ingredients (it can be made even here in Guatemala!).

Sweet and sour eggplant:

• 1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-1" cubes
• 1/2-1 small onion
• 1 small tomato
• 1" fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• handful of fresh cilantro, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1-2 scallions, chopped (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1 teaspoon honey or sugar
• 1 tablespoon (a generous splash) of cider or white vinegar
• lots of black pepper
• two generous dashes of salt
• 1 tablespoon of oil

Toss the eggplant cubes with a generous dash of salt and cover with water in a small bowl. Set aside and soak for at least half an hour (this allows the eggplant to soak up water, instead of soaking up oil later), then drain the salt water.

Slice the onion and tomatoes into 1" pieces. Peel and mince the ginger and garlic.

Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a frying pan or wok at high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook for a minute until fragrant. Add the onion, tomato, and eggplant. Stirring, add the honey, vinegar, salt and pepper. Continue to cook at high heat. Alternate between sautéing without a lid and adding water by the quarter-cup, then covering to simmer, so that the eggplant cooks through and the vegetables melt together, but the sauce browns. The black pepper should add a good spice without the need for red pepper flakes.

As the pan simmers, chop the cilantro and scallion. When the eggplant is cooked through, toss in the herbs and turn off the heat. Serve hot!