You might know them as eggplants or you might know them as aubergines, but they are exactly the same plant. The English prefer the latter name, while in North America we use the former.
The eggplant is part of what is known as the “nightshade family,” the same family in which you’ll find potatoes, tomatoes, chili peppers and tobacco.
It’s also one of those food items that we call a vegetable but is really a fruit – and even more specifically, eggplant is a berry.
Ranging in length from just a couple of inches to a foot, the eggplant can be a wide range of colours too. There are Japanese and Asian eggplants and Italian and baby eggplants. The most common variety is the larger pear-shaped eggplant that is at peak season between August and September. The skin of older eggplants is tough and generally needs to be removed before used in cooking applications.
One story of the large purple egg-shaped plant and how it might have reached further regions of the world is that an early version of it, likely originating in India or southeast Asia, may have at one time simply floated to another distant land and was eventually brought to North America.
It turns out that the cell structure inside the eggplant’s flesh would have allowed it to float – and it is the same cell structure that makes cooking, and especially frying, eggplant a little bit tricky.
Eggplant has a sponge-like flesh by virtue of miniscule air pockets between the plant’s cells. When the flesh is cooked, the structure collapses and, depending on the variety of eggplant, becomes either creamy or solid and therefore of a firmer texture: that can be a benefit, of course, depending on the dish that is being cooked.
It is used in classic dishes such as baba ganoush, moussaka and melanzane alla Parmigiana. It also pickles quite well and as such can make a significant contribution to a salad or an acidic element on a charcuterie board.
To salt or not to salt?
Given those dishes, chefs will have different objectives when it comes to cooking the vegetable: they will either want a creamier eggplant or a stiffer, firmer eggplant. The other factor when cooking eggplants is that they tend to cook down into a much smaller volume than what you started with at the same time that the air pockets soak up a lot of oil when they are frying. Dégorger, a process of salting a vegetable like eggplant in order to remove excess water, is thought by some cooks to improve pan-frying slices of eggplant and see them cooked more quickly before soaking up too much oil.
Decades ago, before less bitter eggplant varieties were bred, the dégorger process was thought to alleviate the vegetable of some of its bitterness; however, less bitter eggplants are now produced and many cooks don’t see an appreciable difference between a salted eggplant and an unsalted one. Otherwise, another preparation strategy that might be recommended is to partially cook eggplant slices for a short time in a microwave in order help them absorb less oil.
Caponata: an eggplant classic, hot or cold
India, China, the Middle East and Greece all love eggplant, but if there is region of the world that sees it as something of a defining vegetable it is southern Italy and Sicily. Catania, sitting just under Mount Etna on the east coast of Sicily, is one of many places that cooks caponata in its varied regional fashion.
The dish is often agrodolce – a bit sweet and sour. Done properly, Catanian caponata isn’t a stew like, say, the popular Provençal dish ratatouille. Chopped eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, onions and celery are each sautéed separately to harness their individual flavours and particular textures by cooking each to their optimum degree. The ingredients are assembled and some sweetness (such as honey) is added along with white wine vinegar, green olives, capers, a few hot pepper flakes, a little tomato sauce and a drizzle of anchovy juice. A garnish of mint becomes a nice addition. The dish can be eaten hot or cold.
A final note: eggplant, a vegetable which hails orginally from hot tropical climates, doesn’t keep well in the cold of a walk-in cooler: the chill damages the internal tissue and leads to brown discolouration and changes in its flavour.
[Banner image/Artemas Ward, via Wikimedia Commons]
You might know them as eggplants or you might know them as aubergines, but they are exactly the same plant. The English prefer the latter name, while in North America we use the former.
The British word for eggplant is aubergine, which has French, Catalan, and Arabic origins. Some say the less common white varieties of the typically purple plant led to the name used in the United States, but the terms are generally interchangeable regardless of color or shape.
One of the most popular was the long, thin, purple eggplant from Taiwan known as Ping Tung. This is an exceptional eggplant with sweet, pleasant tasting flesh. The plants are incredibly prolific and produce throughout the entire season.
Translated into English as 'mad-apple', 'rage-apple', or 'raging apple', this name for eggplants is attested from 1578 and the form 'mad-apple' may still be found in Southern American English.
Eggplant is a high-fiber, low-calorie food that is rich in nutrients and comes with many potential health benefits. From reducing the risk of heart disease to helping with blood sugar control and weight loss, eggplants are a simple and delicious addition to any healthy diet.
Aubergine + Eggplant = Eggbergine Aubergine and eggplant are exactly the same thing with the only difference being their translation. The English know the fruit as aubergine and Americans know it was an eggplant. Brinjal is also a name used in Asia.
In England, the closest counterpart to biscuits and gravy would be scones and gravy. However, it's important to note that the gravy in this context refers to a savory sauce, rather than the creamy, sausage-infused gravy that is synonymous with the American version.
Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.; 2n = 24), commonly known as brinjal, aubergine, or guinea squash, belongs to the Solanaceae family and is included under the genus Solanum, one of the largest genera covering more than 1550 species (Chen, 1997).
While the skin of a small young eggplant is edible, the skin becomes bitter on larger or older eggplants and should be peeled. When in doubt, the answer to, "Do you peel eggplant before cooking?" is yes, peel it. Use a vegetable peeler or paring knife to remove the skin.
The longer the eggplant sits after being harvested, the chances of it becoming bitter grow, which is why your highest chance of purchasing a bitter vegetable is at the grocery store, especially out of season, when it's been shipped from afar and you have no idea how long it's been sitting around.
Also called baby eggplant, this variety is small and squat with a dark reddish-purple color. You can use it in an Indian preparation like a curry, but it's also great roasted or stuffed. Get a Recipe: Stuffed Eggplants with Herbed Bulgur.
Bad eggplant looks wrinkly and dull-colored. Squishy texture and a rotten odor are other common signs of bad eggplant. Fresh eggplant lasts 2-3 days at room temperature, 5 days in the refrigerator, and 8-12 months in the freezer. Eggplant that turns brown after you slice it is okay to eat.
Eggplant, on the other hand, is classified as a Nightshade, and its scientific name is Solanum melongena. Aubergine and guinea squash are other common names for eggplant. While eggplant is occasionally called a squash, it has no relation to zucchini or the rest of the squash family.
Did You Know? Most people think eggplants are a vegetable, however, because the plant has seeds it's technically a fruit! Eggplants are related to tomatoes and peppers—and are in the nightshade family.
When it comes to eating an eggplant, there's one part you should never eat. Prevention points out that the eggplant flowers and leaves should always be avoided because they're dangerous. They contain a high amount of a toxic compound called solanine.
Introduction: My name is Lakeisha Bayer VM, I am a brainy, kind, enchanting, healthy, lovely, clean, witty person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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