I tried to replicate the garlic eggplant I get from take out Chinese. I used 4 large cloves but really didn't taste them, and in the end I realized it was missing sugar. I didnt' want to use sugar. I guess I'll just leave it to take out!
I remember a commercial for Calgon laundry detergent. A customer is asking the owner how he gets clothes so clean, and he replies: "Ancient Chinese secret!" The camera cuts to an aside with his wife, who explains that the detergent is their "secret", and eventually comes to the counter grinning, saying, "We need more Calgon!"- and the customer says " 'Ancient Chinese secret", huh?..."
Maybe the eggplant dish included something most of us wouldn't think of.
I'm surprised you couldn't taste the garlic. I absolutely love Chinese food- I always have- but I'm clueless about the ingredients unique to that cuisine beyond soy sauce, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and those tiny corn cobs. I once got a book on Chinese cooking by Stella Lau Fessler out of the library; I can't remember if it was only vegetarian recipes.
ETA: The Kabocha squash turned out great- nice and sweet, with no oil or seasoning necessary! I just rinsed/scrubbed it off well, took out the seeds, cut it into big pieces, and put it in the crockpot on "low". The skin is edible, so I left it on; it's a little bit crunchy and not tasty compared to the flesh, but it's good. I'm munching the seeds now and then- I didn't bother roasting them, but they probably would have tasted better. Then again, these seeds have a much thicker hull/coat than pumpkin seeds, and might be better raw.
