Miso-Glazed Eggplant With Spicy Chickpeas And Ninja Nuts

March 15, 2017
Wicked
Appetizers

Updated: February 02, 2022

45 minutes
4 servings
0.0

Grillin’ is not just for burgers … this hearty salad is a killer stand-alone meal! We are excited to bring you this latest Wicked Healthy recipe that we’ve created with our friends over at Purple Carrot!

Ingredients

for the Ginger-Miso Dressing

1 cup mandarin (or orange) juice
1/2 cup white miso
1/4 C olive oil
1/2 tsp ginger, grated

for the salad

1/2 cabbage, cut into (3) large wedges
1 zucchini, sliced in (3) long planks
1 sweet white onion, peeled and sliced into (5-6)rounds
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tsp olive oil
1 C chickpeas
3 T sesame seeds
1/4 t sea salt
1/4 C cilantro, rough chopped
1/4 C mint, rough chopped
6 leaves of green kale, removed from stem and coarsley chopped
1 orange, sliced into bite-sized wedges
1 Thai chiles, sliced in thin rounds
3 green onion, sliced thin

Instructions

to make the dressing

In high speed blender, blend all ingredients until smooth.

to prepare the salad

Heat up grill to high heat.
Rub the cabbage wedges, zucchini planks and onion rounds with oil. Brush or rub with a little oil, then season each side with salt and pepper.
When grill is up to heat, place these items on the grill and allow to cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side to get some nice coloration and caramelization. Remove from grill.
Coarsely chop the cabbage and onion. Cube the grilled zucchini. Keep them separate and set aside.
In saute pan on medium heat, add about 1 tsp of olive oil followed by the chickpeas. Once these start to cook, toss them around to get a bit of color. Add in the sesame seeds and sprinkle of salt. Toss well to coat the chickpeas with sesame, and remove from heat.
Combine the chopped cilantro, mint and rough chopped kale. Drizzle with some of the citrus miso dressing to lightly coat.
On a platter, compartmentalize all ingredients. Separate the chopped kale, chopped grilled vegetables and sesame chickpeas. Garnish as desired with the orange wedges, sliced chilis and green onion.
Serve warm with the remaining of citrus miso dressing on the side.

Notes

And, in case you didn’t know, eggplant is actually a fruit, not a vegetable, and is related to the tomato and potato. There are tons of different varieties, so feel free to use what’s available to you. You can use canned chickpeas here but, if you want to cook dried chickpeas, here’s a handy and simple guide to show you how. As always, if you want to dial back the heat, reduce the amount of sliced chilis listed in the recipe below or leave them out completely.

Serve this as a main dish or as a small plate, and double up on the glaze if you think you want a little extra for drizzlin’, dippin’ or putting on other things. You can never have too much sauce, if you ask us.