Try Stuffed Eggplant Known as Nikumiso Dengaku

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that just doesn't get the love it deserves. It makes for a good eggplant parmesan and baba ghanoush, but beyond that, it's often a forgotten summer side that's left to char on the grill while people go for the bell peppers and zucchini.

Over in Japan it's a different story though and the humble eggplant is one of summer's hottest vegetables. Nikumiso Dengaku is a delightfully flavorful dish that's made by carving out eggplants to make bowls, and then stuffing them with nikumiso (literally: "meat miso"). I've done a more standard meatless take on eggplant dengaku before, but this version takes this dish from a tasty side to a hearty main.

As with any dengaku, the secret to the nutty, chocolate brown sauce is the hatcho miso. It's made from soybeans and barley just like most miso, but a special cooking process and two years in a cedar cask gives it its dark color and incredible depth. Along with some ground pork and ginger, it makes for a divine sauce with deep earthy notes reminiscent of black beans and caramel.