ON THE DAY: Put a large non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. Halve the eggplants lengthways, score into the flesh in a criss-cross pattern at 3/4-inch intervals, then sprinkle with a little sea salt. Place skin-side down in the pan with ½ a tablespoon of olive oil and 2½ cups of water. Add the star anise, sesame seeds, chili jam, vinegar and soy, then cover and boil gently for 20 to 30 minutes, or until all the water has cooked away, the eggplant is soft through and the chili jam is getting sticky. Turn the heat off.
TO SERVE: Reheat the eggplants for 5 minutes on a medium-high heat, adding extra splashes of water to create a sticky sauce, if needed. Transfer to a serving plate but don’t touch it straight away – the chili jam means it’ll be very hot!