Eggplant katsu with sticky rice, miso beetroot, carrot slaw and curry gravy

Trim the top off the eggplant and cut into 1 cm rounds.

Place in a colander and sprinkle with a little salt. This will draw out some water and allow the flour to stick.

Place the rice in a small pot and wash under running cold water, until the water runs clear.

Strain off all the water, then add just over one and half times the amount of water to rice (1 cup rice = 1 and 2/3 cups of water) and a pinch of salt.

Bring to a boil, stir, then cover and cook on very low heat for 15 minutes, then turn off and allow to sit covered.

Now it’s time to bread the eggplant.

Place the flour, plant milk and katsu crumb all in separate bowls or trays big enough for the eggplant to fit in.

Place the eggplant in the flour and completely cover with flour. Lightly shake off excess flour then transfer to the plant milk, making sure it’s all wet. Finally transfer to the katsu crumb, press the crumb into the eggplant. If there is any eggplant still showing, dab in the plant milk then reapply a little of the crumb.

Peel and grate the beetroot and carrot. Grate the apple. Combine them in a bowl with the miso sesame dressing and a pinch of salt.

Slice the spring onions, keeping the green and white parts separate. Add the white part to the slaw. Reserve the green part for garnish.

Gently warm the gravy.

Heat a large fry pan with a good splash of oil. Once hot, fry the eggplant until golden brown. Transfer the cooked eggplant to a paper towel and season with a little salt.

Serve rice topped with eggplant and slaw on the side. Pour over with gravy and sprinkle with the reserved spring onions.