Terong blado: sticky aubergine with Thai basil from the Maluku cookbook

Terong Blado: sticky aubergine that sets your mouth on fire – or not, if you prefer it that way. You decide how spicy you want to go, but trust us: even the mild version will have you licking the pan clean. This is the aubergine dish that turns your life upside down. Sticky, spicy, fragrant and just as versatile as that one friend who can do everything at once. Want vegetarian, weekday-friendly and comfort food? This is it.

This dish comes from the new cookbook Maluku – The Pure Cuisine of the Moluccan Islands by Carl Lemette-Polhaupessy and Mas van Putten. Together, they are known as De Vrouw met de Baard. Their earlier book Jiwa was awarded Silver Cookbook 2023. Their mission with Maluku? To put the forgotten flavours of the Moluccas back on the map. And terong blado is one of these dishes.

You decide the heat

Terong blado: the recipe

1. Salt, wait, rinse. Cut the aubergines into pieces, sprinkle with salt and leave for 30 minutes. This draws moisture out of the aubergine, preventing the vegetable from soaking up oil. Rinse under cold running water and pat dry with kitchen paper. Sprinkle the aubergine pieces with rice flour or cornflour.
2. Time to fry. Heat enough neutral oil in a wok or frying pan to submerge the aubergine pieces. Let the oil get properly hot: if you drop in a piece of breadcrumb and it starts bubbling and sizzling, the oil is hot enough. Fry the aubergine on all sides for a few minutes until golden brown, then drain on kitchen paper.
3. Make the sauce. Cut the garlic into thin slices and grate the ginger. Finely chop the onion. Remove the seeds and membranes from the red chilli and finely chop it. If you want to make the dish hotter, leave the seeds and membranes in and add an extra rawit chilli or pepper.
4. Combine & let it stick. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or frying pan and fry the garlic, ginger and onion until the onion is translucent. Then add the red chilli, jeruk perut (lime leaf), daun salam (Indonesian bay leaf), kecap and gula jawa (palm sugar). Pour in 50 millilitres of water, stir and let everything simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. Carefully fold in the aubergine and make sure it is coated in sauce on all sides. Give it time for the liquid to evaporate and the sauce to form a sticky coating around the aubergine.
5. Finish with basil. Pick the basil leaves from the stems and tear them roughly. Stir them through the dish at the very end. Taste whether the terong blado is salty enough; if not, carefully season with a little more salt.

Maluku: a culinary journey to the Moluccas

Maluku – The Pure Cuisine of the Moluccan Islands is much more than a cookbook. Carl and Mas spent two months travelling through the Moluccas, looking for flavours that were at risk of disappearing. From Ambon to Seram, they ate, listened and cooked together with locals everywhere they went.

The power of eating together

Alongside wonderful recipes such as this terong blado and the previously shared recipe for koho koho, Maluku also contains beautiful stories about the power of eating together. As guide Stevi told the authors, villages in the Moluccas have traditional pelabanden – bonds representing unconditional loyalty. Even after a devastating civil war, villages came together again during a makan patita panas (warm picnic) to celebrate their connection. Because eating together means healing together. A heartwarming book!

Title: Maluku – The Pure Cuisine of the Moluccan Islands
Author: Carl Lemette-Polhaupessy & Mas van Putten
Price: €34.99
Publisher: Nijgh Cuisine (published 20 May 2025)

Also read:

• • Delicious! Spiced coffee from the Maluku cookbook (about the Moluccan Islands)
  • Make it at home: mackerel à l’américaine
  • Recipe: how to make authentic Indonesian mackerel saté lilit