Spicy Garlicky Stir Fried Eggplant Recipe -- Paleo, Vegan, and Easy

Eggplant is one of those foods that you either love or you hate. Growing up, I was a huge fan of it, but I started making it less since I've been married because my kids don't like it, and my husband thinks it bothers his stomach. For a while, I also thought it might be bothering my stomach, so I didn't make it for some time. However, recently I've been getting eggplant at such good prices that I experimented with it, and fortunately it doesn't seem to be bothering my stomach! So exciting!
But whatever I make with eggplant, I have to eat it myself (unless we have guests) because no one else in the family will touch it. Oh well.
You might laugh at me, but I have a pretty good memory when it comes to food. (My husband, on the other hand, can't tell you what his favorite foods from childhood were. I kid you not.) When I was a teenager, we went on a trip to the Grand Canyon and then concluded the trip in Las Vegas. While in Vegas, we had this absolutely scrumptious sweet, spicy, and garlicky eggplant stir fry, and I'll admit, for years I've attempted to recreate that, and never even coming close.
This past week I got a bunch of eggplants cheaply that looked the shape of Japanese eggplant, which inspired me to give another shot at my recreation attempts. No, I still didn't get a version that tastes exactly like it did then, but this recipe came out so delicious that I had no problem devouring it all myself.
If you're an eggplant fan, try this one out. Hopefully you'll love it as much as I did! Extra bonus; in addition to being gluten free and refined sugar free, this recipe is also Paleo, vegan, and allergy friendly (no eggs or dairy among other things), so it's good for anyone, as long as they're not nightshade free, pretty much.
While you can definitely enjoy this plain, I really liked this over rice (which isn't Paleo, and I really don't regularly eat). If you follow the Paleo diet, eat this over riced cauliflower, riced sweet potatoes, or spiralized zucchini.

Spicy Garlicky Stir Fried Eggplant Recipe -- Paleo, Vegan, and Easy

Ingredients:
1 onion
1 head garlic- 10 cloves
1 inch ginger
4 tablespoons sesame oil or other bland oil, added as needed
10 cups chopped eggplant; approximately 5 mini eggplants or equivalent amount of standard sized eggplants
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce or coconut aminos
3-4 tablespoons date syrup, jaggery syrup, or honey
Hot peppers or hot pepper flakes to taste
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Green onions (optional)

Instructions:
1. Cut onions into rings and mince the garlic. Chop your eggplant. If using large eggplants, dice them. If using small eggplants, cut into half circles.

2. Heat up 2 tablespoons of oil, add the onion and garlic, and saute until fragrant.

3. Add the eggplant and, stirring frequently, cook until the eggplant is fully cooked.

4. Add the salt, soy sauce or coconut aminos, and date syrup or jaggery strup to the eggplant mixture and stir well. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Chop up hot peppers if using and mix into the stir fry.

6. Sprinkle sesame seeds and green onions onto the stir fry.

Enjoy!

Are you a fan of eggplants? What is your favorite way to eat them? Ever make eggplant stir fry? What do you put in yours? Does this look like a recipe you'd try?