Let's talk eggplant

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JustMe

JustMe

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Do you eat it? Do you like it? Or not? What kind of recipes do you use it in? Do you grow it? How does it's growth & harvest compare to tomatoes or peppers?? If you do grow it, how do you preserve the excess??

I have never eaten it before and don't know much about it....other than it's a fruiting crop, similar to tomatoes & peppers (nightshade family), it's purple and is sometimes used for eggplant parmigiana.


I'd like to add more color variety to the old "Eat The Rainbow" and of course if I'm going to eat it, then I want to grow it and the best way of preserving it for later. So any and all info would be greatly appreciated, TIA
 
JustMe said:
Do you eat it? Do you like it?.. What kind of recipes do you use it in?..
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"Ish." :) Mom used it near-incessantly when we were growing up, so.. Let's just say I'm still 'taking a Break from it' (..35 yrs later.. :p

Is-really solid / good as a 'meat-sub' in Chili / with Tomato-Sauce / Pasta (especially when paired with Portobellos and/or Yellow Squashes..) and 'Rellenos' (slices with cheese in center, sauteed on a skillet like 'grilled cheese sammy' 👍

Definitely worth 'putting in the Quiver'.. :cool:

jd
 
I'm thinking it must be one of those kinds of things, ya just have to try it before buying into it. Seems like most people either love it or hate it with few if any, somewhere in the middle.


Amish Heart said:
I grow it, but don't like it. Husband likes it, I chop it up small and add it into things like cabbage rolls. The chickens will eat it. I dehydrated it once with seasoning salt into chips and didn't like it.
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So how is it to grow? Easy? Or need lots of attention? Or similar to tomatoes or peppers? How big are the plants and average amount of harvest?
 
I grew it for the first time last year and got a number of fruit off 2 plants.

The wife made 2 dishes with it; egg plant Parmesan (I didn't care too much for it) and she made an egg plant sausage casserole (I liked that one). In each case we made it in 2 - 8"X 8" pans, cooked and ate one right then and froze the other. I think we ended up eating 6 of the sausage casseroles.

I think they are about the same size as a largish pepper plant and require the same amount of attention.
 
I would suggest you find a couple of recipes that sound good to you, buy 2 egg plants at the grocery store and try it out. We ended up decided to grow it just for the 1 dish, but it may be a bust at your house. Here we try things out and if they don't work out we move on......
 
I just looked, and saw several recipes for cooking eggplant. I read about cooking it before and there are some special things about cooking it. I copied something from one piece I found. There is more to the article.

https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-cook-eggplant/Preparing Eggplants
Do you have to peel eggplant before you cook it? You don't. The skin is entirely edible, though with larger eggplants it can be a little tough. If your eggplant is young, tender, and on the small side, the nutrient-rich skin can probably be left on for skillet frying or braising. Otherwise, peel the skin and then slice or cube the flesh.
The flesh should be pale and creamy and free of blemishes. Remove dark or bruised portions and seeds that are turning brown, as they can have a bitter taste and an unpleasant texture.
If you're roasting the eggplant whole in the oven or on the grill, leave the skin on, then after roasting, let it cool, and scoop out the flesh.

To Salt or Not to Salt
This is a much debated topic. Salting your eggplant slices or cubes does have a few things going for it. First, it draws out juices, which, particularly for older eggplants, can be bitter. It also tightens and firms up the flesh, making the eggplant less likely to soak up as much oil. And salt adds flavor.
However, many cooks point out that modern varieties are not the bitter fruits of the past and that salting them makes little difference. Varieties like Japanese and Chinese eggplant should be fine without salting. With globe eggplants, experiment for yourself.
If you choose to salt your eggplant, first slice or cube it, and then salt generously, allowing the fruit to sit in a colander for at least an hour, preferably longer. Salted eggplant can sit purging for hours without harming the taste or texture. But before cooking the eggplant, be sure to rinse the salt off well. Then place the slices between sheets of paper towel and press gently to remove juices and firm the flesh. This is particularly important when frying your eggplant slices or cubes.
 
My wife went through an eggplant phase a while back, although we've never grown it. It's good at taking on flavors, so you can marinade it and make it taste like whatever you want. We used to have a salad where it was marinated in Italian dressing that was pretty good, and I second UrbanHunter's suggestion for combining it with sausage. If I remember right, most of our recipes came from the Moosewood Cookbook - a vegetarian cookbook we were given that we added sausage or kielbasa to just about every recipe ;)
 
Sorry, I am on the other side of this. Let's NOT talk eggplant. Eggplant won't even stay down. There are no good recipes. If you put chocolate on it I still wouldn't eat it. My wife loves it. Good, She can have all of mine.
 
joel said:
I have grew a few, I only like hummus made with roasted eggplant.
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I should say I like all kinds of hummus, but only eat egg plant roasted in hummus.
A grew egg plant for a Lady I worked with & she peeled & sliced her egg plant, before salting it.
She also gathered Polk salad, but that another thread
The wife found out I was growing egg plant, she made a few dishes with it for herself.
 
I've had good tasting eggplant once, many years ago, I don't know if that could ever be replicated as every time I've tried it since then, it's been bitter, no mater how it was fixed. Wife doesn't like it either, so we just don't plant it in our garden, it's just a waist of space and effort.
 
viking said:
I've had good tasting eggplant once, many years ago, I don't know if that could ever be replicated as every time I've tried it since then, it's been bitter, no mater how it was fixed. Wife doesn't like it either, so we just don't plant it in our garden, it's just a waist of space and effort.
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That's what I want to find out......if it's worth the effort or not.
 
JustMe said:
That's what I want to find out......if it's worth the effort or not.
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I may have said this or maybe someone else has. I'd try cooking it before I'd try growing it. If you like it, such as eggplant parmesan, then maybe try it. I'm not a fan of it, so I don't even try to grow it. I think daughter has gotten it in her CSA (Crop share). I don't know if they liked it or not, or even what they did with it.
 
Weedygarden said:
I may have said this or maybe someone else has. I'd try cooking it before I'd try growing it. If you like it, such as eggplant parmesan, then maybe try it. I'm not a fan of it, so I don't even try to grow it. I think daughter has gotten it in her CSA (Crop share). I don't know if they liked it or not, or even what they did with it.
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Yes, and actually that was my plan......try it before you plant it. And finally did tonight. I was making chicken parmesan anyway. The other day I had bought one eggplant to try.

First off, when I make chicken parm, I don't bread it or even bake it. I just sprinkle the breasts with salt & pepper, then brown both sides in a skillet, then add sauce and simmer till done. At the last minute, top each breast with a pile of cheese, cover & let it melt.

I sliced the eggplant, sprinkled with salt & let it sit to draw out the moisture and some say bitterness. Then I rinsed it, then let it sit in some milk....a tip I found in comments for a recipe. Then I drained it off.

Half the eggplant slices went into a separate saucepan with marinara sauce to simmer several minutes. (I didn't want the eggplant to contaminate the chicken if I didn't like it) Then get topped with cheese & let melt.


The other half of eggplant slices, were brushed with garlic butter, then dredged in seasoned cornflake crumbs, then put in the air fryer till brown & crispy.


Honestly, I didn't expect to like it. I've seen & heard alot of negativity......but it wasn't too bad at all. I did like the crispy chips better than the parm, but I wouldn't mind including it in the meal plan now & then. So I probably will try growing some.
 
I like it and make eggplant parmesan out of it, or Chinese stir fried eggplant which is even better. You have to cut it, salt it, let it sit for half hour and wash it off before cooking or it is bitter.

I grow it also but it does not grow well here ( zone 5) not warm enough for long enough. Eggplant takes a while and needs lots of sun. It grew well in Florida
 
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