Legend has it that Sisig started out as a cure for dizziness and nausea. The sourness of the Sisig dish, essentially a chopped salad , was said to cure the effects of over indulgence, which is ironic given that the Sisig of today is mainly served as pulutan or tapas while drinking alcohol. How good is that! Eggplant Sisig Salad , is the hangover cure you eat while you’re drinking. That’s a double win right there. But even without any alcohol involved, it’s still a delicious dish in its own right!
What on earth is Sisig?
If awards were being handed out for head to tail dining, the Philippines would win it hands down. A classic example of this would be sisig. Traditionally made of meat that wouldn’t be welcome in anyone elses dining table, like pigs ears snout cheeks and liver. First, the meat is boiled until soft, then grilled for extra flavour. After its chopped finely, it is then sautéed and seasoned with lots of garlic onion and calamansi or lemon. When properly cooked, it has the chewy texture from the snout, meaty taste from the cheek , crunch from the ears and creaminess from liver. This was the taste sensation that captured the late Anthony Bourdain’s taste buds when he visited the Philippines in 2009.
Different Strokes for Different Folks…
Not a fan of little Pig Face ? For the squeamish, it can also be made of more conventional cut of pork like belly, shoulder or even seafood like tuna salmon and milkfish. Amen to that.
My version is the heart friendly vegetarian Eggplant Sisig. It has the distinctive sour and savoury taste of the original dish without the coronary inducing cholesterol of the original. While I’m not about to start in lecturing about healthy food choices , I do like to reserve my cholesterol intake for dessert. But that’s just me, each to his own I say.
I like to serve this in lettuce cups (ala san choy bow ) as a starter , or as a side dish. The lettuce provides the crunch and freshness in this delightful Sisig Salad. Goes wonderfully well with any sort of fried fish.
What you need to make this dish..
- Eggplant – you can use the smaller Japanese variety or the larger Italian ones. Eggplant needs to be salted before cooking to draw out the moisture and the bitter taste
- Cos Lettuce – I like serve this dish in lettuce cups. Not only do they look pretty neat but also it provides crunch
- Pantry Essentials – Soy Sauce, Maggi Seasoning Sauce, Lemon, Aioli, Black Pepper, Garlic, Spanish Onion and chilli if you like it hot. Maggi Seasoning adds umami taste, but can be omitted if you don’t have it.
- Tofu – Deep fried cubed tofu maybe added for a more substantial meal
Eggplant Sisig Salad
4
servings5
minutes15
minutesA heart friendly Eggplant Sisig Salad
Ingredients
1 large eggplant or 3 small ones
1 Spanish Onion,finely diced
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon Maggi Seasoning Sauce
Dollop of Mayonnaise or Aioli
Chilli if you want it hot
Flour for dredging eggplant
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons cooking oil, plus 1 tablespoon extra
4 Cos Lettuce leaves to serve
Fried diced tofu optional
1 lemon cut into wedges, to serve
Directions
- Dice eggplant into half inch pieces. Place in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Set aside for 20 minutes.
- Rinse eggplant with water and drain in colander. Pat eggplant pieces with paper towel to dry.
- Dredge eggplant with a bit of flour or cornflour if you want it gluten free.
- Place cooking oil in a fry pan and heat on medium high. Add eggplant pieces and pan fry until eggplant is soft and wilted. Transfer to a plate.
- To the same fry pan, add a tablespoon of cooking oil. On medium high heat, add minced garlic, half of the Spanish onion and cook until fragrant.
- Add eggplant to the pan and stir thru. Add seasoning ,sugar and soy, to the pan and stir together until sugar is dissolved and eggplant is warmed thru. Correct seasoning with salt and pepper. Add fried cubes of tofu if using. Set aside.
- Assembly
- Place lettuce leaves on serving platter. Divide eggplant equally between the leaves.Sprinkle with the rest of the Spanish Onion.
- Add mayonnaise or aioli on top if using.
- Garnish with sliced chilli and coriander if desired . Serve with extra Maggi seasoning sauce with chilli and lemon wedges.
Notes
- Maybe served warm or cold.
