Salad with crab sticks, fried eggplant and cheese

Salad with slices of fried eggplant, crab sticks, garlic and cheese is a nutritious dish with a slight spiciness. A win-win spicy combination of eggplant with garlic and mayonnaise is successfully complemented by inclusions of salty cheese and spicy greens. The addition of crab sticks gives the salad a delicate taste and satiety.

Ingredients

• Eggplant - 230 g
• Crab sticks - 160 g
• Hard cheese - 50 g
• Mayonnaise - 70-100 g (to taste)
• Garlic - 1-2 cloves
• Green onion - 10 g
• Fresh parsley - a few sprigs (5 g)
• Fresh dill - a few sprigs (5 g)
• Salt - to taste
• Ground black pepper - to taste
• Vegetable oil (for frying) - 2 tbsp. spoons

Directions

1. Prepare the ingredients according to the list.
2. If using frozen crab sticks, thaw them beforehand.
3. Set aside 1 small sprig of herbs for garnish.
4. Cut the eggplant into bite-sized pieces and place in a bowl. Sprinkle the eggplant slices with 2-3 generous pinches of salt and mix well. Pour the eggplants with cold water and leave for 30 minutes so that the eggplant gives off all the bitterness. So that the eggplant slices do not float on the surface, but are immersed in water during the infusion process, cover the container with a plate or saucer of a suitable diameter.
5. Then rinse the eggplant slices under running water and dry thoroughly with a paper towel or paper towel.
6. Heat a skillet over medium heat with 1 tbsp. spoon of vegetable oil and put about half of the eggplant slices there, distributing them along the bottom in one layer. Fry the eggplant slices for about 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender, soft and golden.
7. Transfer the fried eggplant to a paper towel to absorb excess oil, if any. Cool down. Repeat the process, frying the remaining eggplant slices in the same way.
8. Cut crab sticks into thin sticks and place in a salad bowl.
9. Add fried eggplant to salad bowl.
10. Grate cheese on a fine grater. Set aside 1-2 pinches of cheese to garnish the salad, if desired. Add the rest of the cheese to the salad bowl.
11. Finely chop the parsley, dill and green onion. Peel the garlic and pass through a press.
12. Add chopped herbs and garlic to the rest of the salad ingredients.
13. (To make it easier to adjust the amount of garlic, you can add 1 clove first, and if the taste seems not rich enough, supplement the already prepared salad with the remaining garlic.)
14. Dress the salad with mayonnaise.
15. Mix well. Add some salt and ground pepper to taste.
16. Taste the salad and adjust the taste.
17. Salad with eggplant, crab sticks and cheese is ready. If desired, before serving, sprinkle the finished salad with a pinch of grated cheese and herbs.
18. Bon appetit!