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Vegetarian, East Asian

Three treasures of the earth with rice

Three treasures of the earth with rice is a vegetarian East Asian dish made with eggplant, potatoes, and green peppers glazed in a sweet soy sauce. It takes 40 minutes for 4 servings, rated easy, at about €1.80 per person. The trick is cooking each vegetable separately, batch by batch, so every one keeps its own texture.

Tonight, the three treasures of the earth, eggplant, potatoes, and green peppers, glazed in a shiny soy sauce.

Three treasures of the earth with rice
Total time
40 min
Difficulty
Easy
Cost per person
€1.80
Calories per person
620 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Summer, Fall
The kids
They generally like it

Three vegetables, one sauce, yet three very different textures on the plate. The potatoes stay soft inside and golden outside, the eggplant turns silky and soaks up the soy sauce, and the green peppers keep a little crunch that wakes up each bite. The sauce, lightly sweet and glossy thanks to the cornstarch, coats everything without drowning the rice underneath.

This is a weeknight dish you can make without much planning, naturally vegetarian, which makes it an easy way to mix up your family's meals. Kids tend to like it because nothing is spicy or strongly flavored, just a mild, familiar soy sauce. It also works well on a Sunday, served simply over white rice, for a meal that's light on prep but asks for a bit of attention at the stove.

The ingredients

4 people

Fruits and vegetables

  • Eggplants 2
  • Potatoes 500 g
  • Green peppers 2
  • Garlic 4 cloves

Pantry

  • Soy sauceoften in the pantry 3 tbsp
  • Sugaroften in the pantry 1 tsp
  • Cornstarchoften in the pantry 1 tsp
  • Neutral oiloften in the pantry 5 tbsp
  • Riceoften in the pantry 300 g
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Allergens Soy, Gluten

The step by step recipe

  1. Cut the eggplants, potatoes, and peppers into pieces of similar size, about 3 cm.

    Even sizes mean even cooking.

  2. Cook the rice in a pot of salted water, then drain it. 11 min

    Let it sit covered off the heat to plump up.

  3. Brown the potatoes in a large pan with the oil for 10 minutes, then set them aside. 10 min

    Cover the pan at first, they cook through without burning.

  4. In the same pan, brown the eggplant, then the peppers, each for a few minutes, and set them aside with the potatoes. 8 min

    Eggplant soaks up oil fast, add another spoonful along the way if needed.

  5. Sauté the garlic, add back all the vegetables, pour in the soy sauce, sugar, and cornstarch dissolved in 10 cl of water, and let it thicken. Serve over the rice. 4 min

    Stir gently with a spatula, the eggplant breaks apart easily.

Our tips to get it right

  • Pat the eggplant pieces dry with a towel before cooking them, they brown better and soak up less oil.
  • Dissolve the cornstarch fully in cold water before adding it, otherwise it clumps up in the sauce.
  • Keep the heat fairly high for the potatoes and peppers, a pan that's not hot enough gives you soft vegetables instead of golden ones.

The variations

  • Swap the green peppers for red or yellow ones, which are sweeter, for a milder tasting sauce.
  • Add diced firm tofu, browned alongside the potatoes, for extra protein in this already vegetarian dish.
  • For a quicker kid friendly version, cut all the vegetables smaller, they'll cook faster and taste just as good.

What to serve it with

  • A bowl of plain white rice
  • A light green tea
  • A few fresh cilantro leaves

Storage

Keeps for 2 to 3 days in the fridge in a sealed container. It freezes, but the potatoes lose a bit of their bite once thawed. Reheat in a pan over low heat with a splash of water to bring the sauce back to its glossy texture.

Questions about this dish

Can I use flour instead of cornstarch?

Yes, one teaspoon of flour dissolved in water works too, the sauce will just be slightly less glossy and clear.

Do you need to peel the eggplant before cooking?

No, the skin holds up well during cooking and keeps the pieces from falling apart. You can peel it if you prefer a softer texture.

Can I prep the vegetables ahead of time?

You can chop all the vegetables the day before and keep them in a sealed container in the fridge. Cook them at the last minute so they keep their texture.

Will kids who don't like eggplant eat this?

Cooked this way, eggplant turns very soft and mostly picks up the taste of the sweet soy sauce. Many kids accept it more easily prepared like this than raw or grilled.

How long does it take to make the three treasures of the earth with rice?

Count 40 min in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “easy”.

How many calories are in the three treasures of the earth with rice?

About 620 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does the three treasures of the earth with rice cost?

About €1.80 per serving, or €7.20 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains soy, gluten. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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