Thursday, April 29, 2010

Curtis Stone - Deep Fried Aubergine And Mozzarella With Basil



I know you would think that I am obsessed with Curtis Stone since I have been talking non-stop of his great recipes the last few days. But the truth is I am obsessed with his style of cooking. Very creative, very adventurous  and a very gorgeous young chef .This is one simple and yet delicious snack or canapé from his book that has captivated my attention since the book arrived and last night I made them ...thus satiated my craving and stop the salivating. I get to savor the real thing instead of savoring the virtual ones :p 



I have been cooking aubergine for the last few decades and this is the first time that ingredients like mozzarella and basil  were used to complement aubergine. It was a great match ,the crispy-ness on the outside and the moist and gooey cheese from the inside was enough to send me to heaven and back. Truly a fabulous way to cook aubergine and I was not wrong for once, what my eyes feasted on turned out great. Of course appearance wise,  his creation looks better than mine :) but taste wise mine should be the equally as good as his * wink



this can be served as a snack or as a canapé


Deep Fried Aubergine And Mozzarella With Basil - adapted from Cooking With Curtis


Ingredients:

1 aubergine
2 tbsp salt
1 ball buffalo mozzarella, drained
8 fresh basil leaves 
100 g plain flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
150 g  fresh breadcrumbs 
1 litre vegetable oil for deep frying

Method for the aubergine :

Slice the aubergine thinly into 16 rounds and lay on a baking tray. Sprinkle the salt over the aubergines and leave to stand for 10 minutes to extract the bitter juices then rinse under cold running water and pat dry with kitchen paper. 

Slice the mozzarella into 8 pieces then make a sandwich with the aubergine, mozzarella and basil leaves.
Dip the aubergine sandwich into the flour and shake off any excess. Then dip into the beaten eggs and then into the breadcrumbs to coat. Repeat the process to give the sandwich a double coating of the breadcrumbs.

Heat the oil in a deep saucepan to 160 C (or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds) Carefully lower the sandwich into the hot oil and deep-fry until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and cut the sandwich into 4 portions. Serve with a warm tomato sauce.

For the tomato sauce

2 shallots, peeled and diced
2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 fresh chilli, chopped
10 ripe plum tomatoes, skin removed, finely diced

Method for the tomato sauce:

Sweat the shallots in a litlle olive oil until soft. Add the garlic and chilli and leave to sweat for a further 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook for 15-20 minutes.




*      *      *



21 comments:

  1. These look absolutely amazing. I'll bet they're delicious! How can you miss? Aubergine, Mozzarella, Basil, DEEP FRIED????

    You're killin me. Keri (a.k.a. Sam)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank goodness, another great way of making the aubergine! Thanks for sharing the recipe ya! hehe.... Save me the book! Enjoy!

    Cheers, Kristy

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very delicious. I can even snack on them.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Looks so delicious!!! Next time please remember to cook more...hehee..

    ReplyDelete
  5. Looks delicious. Hey, when are you going to open shop and run a cafe? Business will be good.

    ReplyDelete
  6. i need some tissues now, Elin.. gosh.. but i cannot imagine how they taste la.. got leen koe or not? can fry some to office?

    ReplyDelete
  7. The combination of eggplant, mozzarella, and basil is quite classic. Great job with the photos, beautiful. Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  8. love eggplant, squash, okra and just about anything fried - the tomato sauce looks yummy

    ReplyDelete
  9. These aubergines look so crunchy and delicious! Excellent with mozzarella and basil combo!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Elin, the way you combined the eggplant with basil and cheese sounds and looks delicious...nice flavor ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Yes, someone is truly very obsessed with Curtis Stone! I don't even need to buy his book, all I need to do is ask and request for Elin to cook and here she will post it up with gorgeous picture that makes me drool complete with a recipe for me to replicate at home too!

    ReplyDelete
  12. How can you miss with basil and mozzarella deep fried. Mouthwatering?

    ReplyDelete
  13. This one looks so amazingly delicious! I like it deep fried! I guess there would be no difference if I add some veggies here.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Looks and sounds delicious. I'll have to try it. I cook a lot of eggplants, normally stir-fried, steamed, or in curries.

    Thanks for visiting my blog and following :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh, my! I love the mozzarella melting within! It's so hard not to give it a bite ... even it's close to bedtime now! Elin, why are you doing this to me!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Gotta make this one too! A great way to enjoy eggplants. Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Sonia...thanks for the packet of Bak Kut Teh Soup Mix :)

    Sam...haha yup no one should miss this great fried aubergine :)

    Kristy...how's the finger ? Hope it is much better after that ice cream cake :) Take care and dun vent your anger on the poor finger ;p

    Mary...yesss...you can snack on it and you cant stop :))

    Anncoo...haha okie no problem...just help yourself thru the Window :)

    Cheah...paiseh..not up to standard yet :))

    Claire...you dun nid tissues you nid ' oxygen ' :p

    Lazaro...thanks ;)

    Drick...simple sauce but great with the fried aubergine :)

    5 Star Foodie...yes excellent combo :)

    Juliana...this is a must try fried aubergine..you will love the great combo and flavor!

    Quinn....I am I think I am...hahaha he is so gorgeous * looking around me, hey the wild boar is not around, so savfe to say this ** hey who wouldn't. I am so in love with all his recipes that I can't wait to try out all his recipes, so you stay tuned :p

    Mother Rimmy...one should not miss this out..fabulous fried aubergine !

    Kathy...you are speechless only yum yumm lol!

    Kitchen tables....yup it will still taste good :)

    Biren...you are welcome, I like your blog so from now I will be following wherever you are....:)

    Pei Lin!!! so good to see you here. Have a great day and learn to relax more and share more of your bakes :)) I am your great fan :)

    Angie dear...you MUST try this out..you will love it for sure :))

    ReplyDelete
  18. Dear Elin!
    Greetings!
    A very interesting morsel, a fusion of Asian and Italian concepts!
    Cheers,
    Robert-Gilles

    ReplyDelete
  19. Dear Robert

    Thanks for dropping by and this is an interesting and tasty piece of morsel and I knew it will taste good the moment I set my eyes on it :)

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...