Most chefs will tell you their best recipes start with a memory. For Silver Iocovozzi, one in particular stands out: his grilled eggplant smothered in a bright mix of seasoned tomatoes, a dish he first tasted on a beach in the Philippines.
Iocovozzi, who grew up in North Carolina, runs Neng Jr.’s in Asheville with his husband, Cherry. Iocovozzi’s father was an American serviceman. His mother, Neneng, is from the Philippines. (Her nickname is Neng, and he was so much like her when he was growing up, people called him Neng Jr.) The tiny restaurant has become a national darling for a menu that marries Filipino food with Appalachian ingredients and technique. The eggplant, a favorite with diners, began on a visit to his mother’s homeland in 2018, during a morning he spent on the beach with his uncle near his house in the city of Batangas.
“Tito Arnold is hilarious and likes to have a lot of fun constantly,” Iocovozzi says. “We were up early just enjoying the beach before it got too hot, and a woman walked toward us carrying this bag of eggplants.” His uncle bought some and made a fire, pushing the coals into a pyramid and roasting the eggplants, called talong in Tagalog, until they were nearly black. He nestled them into bowls lined with banana leaves and topped them with an enticing blend of tomatoes and cilantro spiked with fish sauce. “That was one of the most memorable dishes I had in the Philippines,” Iocovozzi says.
It’s an easy dish to re-create at home. He prefers Japanese eggplants because they turn so custardy on the grill. Avoid ones that feel too firm, he advises. They should give when you press on them with your thumb.
Grilling the eggplants requires a little patience. Pull them too soon and the flesh won’t become creamy, a texture essential to the dish. Wait until the skin chars to black. They should release a little puff of steam when they’re ready.
Think of the topping as a kind of juicy salsa. Sliced Sungold or other cherry tomatoes work nicely, but feel free to use any good summer garden tomatoes chopped into roughly uniform pieces. You want the most flavorful tomatoes you can find. “I like to let the ingredients speak for themselves,” Iocovozzi says.
You can make the mixture ahead of time and chill it before you top the steaming eggplants for even more hot-cold contrast, but it’s just fine to whip it up right before serving, too. Like much of the Neng Jr.’s menu, the dish reflects the best kind of culinary amalgamation. Though Iocovozzi was raised on Filipino food, one of the first restaurants he worked in was an Eastern Carolina barbecue spot. “There’s this appreciation of open-fire cooking that crosses cultures,” he says. “I try to stay true to the flavors of my mom and the food I grew up with, but I want it to feel genuine to this place.”
