Eggplant Jerky

It's time for another Recipe Redux, and this month's theme is all about dehydrating foods. Perfect timing for preserving summer produce before it starts to dwindle. I must admit, I was a little intimidated, since I don't own a dehydrator. But after some googling, I learned you can also dehydrate food in the oven. After spotting this recipe for eggplant bacon BLT, I decided to make a crispy eggplant bacon by dehydrating it in the oven. 

Too bad I didn't read the directions to see how long it would take. Twenty hours!! Umm, no thanks. 

Still, I couldn't get the idea of eggplant bacon out of my mind. Plus, I'm pretty stubborn so there's that too. So, I increased the temperature, sliced the eggplant a little thinner and decided to see what would happen. 

After about three hours of dehydrating, I'd maxed out on my patience, plus I needed the oven to bake sweet potato fries. When I took it out of the oven, it wasn't exactly crispy, but chewy and a little tough, in a good way. It reminded me of something I couldn't quite put my finger....it's like jerky! 

Thus, eggplant jerky was born. 

Beef jerky is one of those trashy snack foods I secretly kind of love. Now that they sell grassfed, organic jerky, I do indulge guilt free every so often. Well, not exactly guilt free since I inhale a $10 bag in about 2 seconds.

Even our dog loves beef jerky. One weekend, a friend brought a big box of slim jims for a tailgate (don't ask). When we left the dogs alone for a few hours, Charlie, our Saint Bernard, ate the entire box, wrappers and all. Months later, we were still finding slim jim wrappers, umm, coming out the other end. 

I'm pretty excited I was able to salvage my eggplant bacon and turn it into a salty, smoky snack. Plus, you can still use this the same ways you would use bacon. Throw a few pieces into a salad, chop it up and add it to a veggie omelet or make that vegan BLT. That is, if you don't inhale the whole batch in 2 seconds...

To my Coumbia, SC readers: I'm excited to announce that I will be leading an 8-week Nutrition Bootcamp at Jamie Scott Fitness from October 2-November 20! The intensive program will involve nutrition coaching, goal setting and weekly challenges, and will cover topics ranging from label reading, meal planning, going out to eat and more! For more information and to sign up, check out their website! 

Eggplant Jerky 

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoon pure maple syrup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 large eggplant

In a large bowl, mix soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup, olive oil, and spices. Whisk to combine. Slice eggplant into 1/4-inch rounds and add to bowl with the marinade. Toss the eggplant with the marinade and let sit 10 minutes, tossing halfway. 

While the eggplant is marinating, preheat the oven the 200 degrees. Oil two large baking sheets. Place the eggplant rounds evenly on the baking sheets without overlapping. Dehydrate in the oven 3 hours, flipping halfway. If there are any thinner rounds that cook dry faster, remove them earlier and set aside. Store covered in the refrigerator for about 1 week. 

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