Crispy baked aubergine katsu curry

1 HOUR 10 MINUTES | SERVES 4 | EASY |

Katsu curry is usually a breaded chicken escalope fried until crisp, then covered in a sweet-and-spicy Japanese curry sauce. My veggie version heroes the humble aubergine (which is baked, not fried). You can’t recreate this crispy element in a slow cooker, so use the oven instead.

V LC

olive oil for the baking sheet

plain flour 50g

eggs 3, beaten

panko breadcrumbs 100g

aubergines 2 medium, sliced into 1cm-thick slices

cooked basmati rice to serve

spring onions sliced, to serve CURRY SAUCE

olive oil 1-2 tbsp

carrot 1, finely diced

onion 1 large, finely diced

garlic 4 cloves, crushed ginger a thumb-sized piece, finely grated

plain flour 1 heaped tbsp

medium curry powder 1 heaped tbsp

garam masala 1 heaped tsp

vegetable stock 700ml if using the hob (or 500ml if using a slow cooker)

runny honey 1 tbsp

soy sauce 1-2 tbsp

cornflour 1 tsp (slow cooker only)

• Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 and oil a baking sheet.

• Start with the sauce. Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Cook the carrot and onion for 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for 2 minutes. Next, add the flour and spices, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Pour in the stock and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring regularly, until the sauce has thickened to a gravy. Add the honey and soy sauce to taste.

• If you like a smooth sauce, pass it through a fine-mesh sieve or blitz with a handheld blender for a silky finish. Keep warm.

• Put the flour into a wide, shallow bowl; the beaten eggs into a second wide, shallow bowl; and the breadcrumbs into a third wide, shallow bowl. Cover the aubergine slices first in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs. Put on the oiled baking sheet and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, turning halfway.

• Serve the crisp aubergines with a portion of rice, some curry sauce and a sprinkling of spring onions.

SLOW COOKER

Put the curry sauce ingredients (except the oil and cornflour) into your slow cooker. Put on the lid and cook on the high setting for 3 hours. To thicken the sauce, whisk together 4 tsp water and the cornflour in a bowl, then stir through. Then follow steps 1, 3, 4 and 5.

PER SERVING 395 KCALS | FAT 12.9G SATURATES 2.4G | CARBS 51G | SUGARS 14.1G FIBRE 9.8G | PROTEIN 13.8G | SALT 1.4G

Cook Slow: Light and Healthy by Dean Edwards (£16.99, Hamlyn).