Detailed Recipe for Hunan Style Mashed Chili, Eggplant & Preserved Egg (Lei La Jiao Pi Dan Qie Zi)

 This is a classic, super appetizing home-style dish from Hunan cuisine.

 It features smoky roasted chili, soft creamy eggplant, and rich preserved eggs, mashed together with a savory, slightly spicy dressing.

 It is fragrant, tender, and an excellent rice-pairing side dish.

Ingredients

Main Ingredients

• 2 long purple eggplants
• 3–4 fresh green chilies (or spicy Hunan chili peppers)
• 2 preserved eggs (century eggs)

Aromatics

• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 small piece ginger
• A little chopped scallion

Seasonings

• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp oyster sauce
• ½ tsp sugar
• A pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp chili oil (optional)
• A little white pepper
• Sesame oil
• Proper cooking oil

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Prepare and roast the chilies

   Wash green chilies, remove stems. Heat a dry pan over low heat, put chilies in and roast slowly. Press and turn constantly until the skin is charred and wrinkled, and a strong smoky aroma comes out.

   Take out the chilies, let them cool slightly, then peel off the charred skin. Tear the chilies into strips by hand.
2. Cook the eggplants

   Wash eggplants, cut into long sections. Steam them over high heat for 12–15 minutes until fully soft and can be easily pierced with a chopstick.

   Take out the steamed eggplants, squeeze out excess water gently, then tear them into thin strips by hand.
3. Process preserved eggs

   Peel the preserved eggs, rinse them clean. Cut each into small dices or roughly mash them. Set aside.
4. Mince aromatics

   Peel garlic and ginger, chop them into fine mince. Put them into a bowl together with scallion sections.
5. Make the seasoning sauce

   In the bowl with garlic and ginger, add light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, a pinch of salt and white pepper. Stir well until the seasonings dissolve.

   Add chili oil if you prefer a spicier taste.
6. Mash all ingredients (traditional Hunan way)

   Put the roasted chili strips, eggplant strips and preserved egg dices into a large bowl or a traditional mortar.

   Use a masher or pestle to gently mash and mix all ingredients together, so the flavors fully blend.
7. Mix with sauce and finish

   Pour the prepared seasoning sauce into the mashed mixture. Drizzle with a little sesame oil.

   Stir and mix evenly until all ingredients are coated with sauce.
8. Serve

   Transfer to a plate, sprinkle a little extra scallion for decoration. Serve at room temperature or slightly warm for the best flavor.

Cooking Tips

1. Roasting chilies with no oil is the key to the authentic smoky flavor of this dish.
2. Tearing eggplants by hand keeps a better texture than cutting with a knife.
3. Do not squeeze eggplants too dry, to keep them tender and juicy.
4. Adjust the number of chilies based on your tolerance for spiciness.
5. This dish tastes even better after resting for 10 minutes to let flavors fully infuse.