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Bean Thread Noodles with Asian Eggplant

A stir-fry of bean thread noodles, eggplant, tofu, and a tamarind-sugar vinaigrette, garnished with coriander.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Eggplant and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 801 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓

Bean Thread Noodles with Asian Eggplant

Timeabout 5 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Soak bean thread noodles in water for 10 minutes.

  2. Bring 4 cups water to a boil and place eggplants in water to poach.

  3. Reduce heat to medium and cook, turning often, for about 8 minutes.

  4. When eggplants are tender, remove from heat, drain and set aside to cool slightly.

  5. When cool enough to handle, slice into 2-inch-long pieces.

Make the topping and sauce

  1. Heat large skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons oil.

  2. Stir-fry garlic until golden, then remove from pan.

  3. Add 2 sliced shallots and stir-fry until golden.

  4. Add remaining oil and heat tofu cubes through, browning slightly.

  5. Remove from heat.

  6. Combine vinegar, sugar, and tamarind concentrate in a small saucepan.

  7. Heat over medium heat until sugar dissolves.

Cook and serve

  1. Trim noodle bundle in half and add to skillet with half the dressing mixture and garlic.

  2. Let noodles heat through and absorb liquid, cooking and stirring over medium heat for about 5 minutes.

  3. Remove noodles from skillet and place in serving dish.

  4. Top with tofu and eggplant.

  5. Garnish with coriander leaves and remaining sliced shallots.

  6. Pass with remaining sauce.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

330Calories
10 gProtein
19 gFat
34 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 10 ingredients. The other 3 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Tofu100g firm76
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Eggplant1 cup cubed (82g)35
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Beannot in our table0
Tamarindnot in our table0
Coriandernot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Eggplant + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together801 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

  2. Tamarind + coriandertop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together271 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).

  3. Garlic + coriandertop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,474 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Garlic + shallottop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,000 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

  5. Eggplant + shallottop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together16 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Bean thread noodles
Absorb the tamarind dressing and become tender and chewy as they hydrate.
Asian eggplants
Poaching makes them tender and soft, giving the dish a creamy, meaty body.
Tofu nuggets
Browning in oil adds a slightly crisp, savory surface contrasting with the soft noodles.
Tamarind concentrate
Provides the sour, fruity acidity that defines the dressing.
Sugar
Balances the sourness of the tamarind and vinegar and rounds out the sauce.
Shallots
Stir-frying until golden adds sweetness and aroma, and fried shallots add savory crunch.

The step that matters

Cooking the noodles with the dressing. Bean thread noodles absorb liquid as they cook; if the heat is too high or they are left unstirred, they can scorch or clump, while too little cooking leaves them undercooked and stiff. Stirring over medium heat lets them hydrate evenly and absorb the sauce.

Swap the coriander

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (eggplant, garlic, shallot, tofu, vinegar, sugar, tamarind):

  1. Turmericfits better
  2. Cuminfits better
  3. Gingerfits about as well
  4. Corianderthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against eggplant, garlic, shallot, tofu, vinegar, sugar, tamarind. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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