Compared to many other vegetables, eggplant is special because of its softness and silkiness. In Chinese-style stir-fried eggplant, a bit of crispy vegetables is often added to enhance the layers, but steamed, roasted, or fried eggplants are rarely paired with other vegetables. To avoid a monotonous taste, you can sprinkle some breadcrumbs on the eggplant.

If you're steaming eggplant, you can first crush the cooked eggplant and mix in breadcrumbs. If you're grilling eggplant, then slice it thinly, grill it until cooked, then pour sauce and breadcrumbs over it. If you want to fry eggplant, try first coating the raw eggplant with breadcrumbs. This won't mix in any unusual flavors in the dish, but it gives it a touch of crispiness within its softness.