Sometimes the most simple of ideas turn out to be the greatest. That’s exactly what happened when I was figuring out what to do with an eggplant I had bought. Did I want to make eggplant parmesean? No, I was making pork and that would not go with it at all. How about a roasted eggplant salad? Nah, that wasn’t quite what I was going for. Eggplant… fries? Now that’s what I’m talking about.

No fancy beer batter or coating, just a simple dusting of flour mixed up with onion powder, parsley, cayenne, and fresh garlic. And to top it off, a drizzle of honey, that I came across when looking up to see others’ versions of eggplant fries. Brilliant! Just the right amount of salty and sweet. Don’t be scared of the honey, just a thin drizzle is all you need, and if you absolutely just do not like the honey, well, these fries are almost just as good without.

Can you see that honey drizzle? My mouth is watering just thinking about it…

Eggplant Fries

1 large eggplant
1/4 cup of flour
1-2 cloves fresh chopped garlic
1/4 tsp cayenne
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp fresh parsley
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
Canola or vegetable oil, for frying
Salt
Honey

Begin by mixing the flour, garlic, cayenne, onion powder, parsley, salt, and black pepper together in a bowl. Set aside. In the meantime, heat up a heavy bottomed pan with about 1-2 inches of oil up to 375 degrees. Then take your eggplant and peel most of the skin off – don’t worry if you leave a little behind, I did, and they tasted just fine. Then, cut off the top and bottom of the eggplant and then cut in half lengthwise. Cut matchstick pieces -they do not have to be exact or uniform. In fact, some of my fries were a little thicker than others; I just tried to group them into the same frying batches so they would cook at the same time.

Once your eggplant has been cut into sticks, dredge in the flour lightly, tapping off any excess. Once your temperature has reached 375 degrees, take a fry and dip it into the oil; if it starts bubbling you’re ready to go. Work in small and manageable batches, being sure not to overcrowd the pan. Let the fries cook for about 1-2 minutes and then flip them over in the oil and continue to cook until deep golden brown. Drain on papertowels or a wire rack and season with salt as soon as they have come out of the oil. Once all batches have been fried, drizzle with a little honey and serve warm.

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