What you need to know when choosing eggplants, what are they eaten with? TOP-10 of the most relevant dishes for every taste.
Eggplant is a berry for all botanical reasons. But since we do not use them for making compotes and preserves, we are used to counting them as vegetables. This plant is native to India. Eggplant does not require long-term processing, perfectly retains its properties under various types of heat exposure, therefore it has gained popularity in the cuisines of different nations of the world. In our country, these fruits are popularly called "blue".
How to choose the right eggplant?
It's not a secret for anyone that in order for the taste to turn out to be really rich, and the dish to be healthy, you need to carefully choose the products for its preparation, this also applies to blue ones.
What to look out for when buying eggplants:
- Colors … Recently, many new varieties of eggplant have been bred. Thus, white, orange and even striped fruits appeared. Therefore, it cannot be argued that a high-quality vegetable should be dark lilac in color. However, it is quite clear that the color should be uniform, without spots and inclusions.
- Density … A well-ripened vegetable should be firm and firm. A lethargic, wrinkled fruit clearly shows that the eggplant has been plucked a long time ago and has already begun to lose its properties.
- Peduncle … This is the name of the herbal part of the plant that remains on the eggplant when it is removed from the bush. It must be green. A yellow, rotten pedicel indicates staleness of the product.
- Smell … The characteristic smell of eggplant is hard to hear without cutting the fruit. But the complete absence of aroma is not an indicator that it was grown using chemistry, it is quite acceptable for this group of plants.
- The size … Eggplants of all sizes are eaten. But it is important to know that the skin of larger fruits can have a bitterness that will affect the taste of the dish.
Features of cooking eggplant
Cooking eggplants is not a laborious process, even a novice cook can handle any recipe. But connoisseurs and cooking professionals note some subtleties that you should know in order to avoid elementary mistakes.
To cook delicious eggplants, consider the following patterns, nuances and recommendations:
- If the purchased eggplants have a noticeable bitterness, do not throw them away; it is enough to place the fruits in salted cold water for 30-45 minutes. Eggplants quickly "give off" bitterness, and they can be cooked in any form.
- For caviar or eggplant paste, it is better to use white eggplant fruits. These types of vegetables tend to have thicker skins but fewer seeds.
- During the cooking process, fried eggplants absorb large amounts of oil, thereby increasing their calorie content. In order to avoid this, before frying, it is necessary to cover the already cut fruits with salt at the rate of 1 tsp. for 1 kg of product and leave for 30-40 minutes. Squeeze the slices well before frying.
- Experienced housewives harvest eggplants for the winter using the canning method. However, this method reduces the amount of nutrients by 40%. Therefore, in order to preserve the maximum amount of trace elements, it is better to use freezing. But even in this moment, not everything is simple. Thawed fruits, as a rule, have a "rubbery" texture; when cooked, they become watery. The best option is to freeze the baked eggplant.
TOP 10 eggplant recipes
If you still have not acquired your favorite eggplant dish, then we will be happy to share the most popular recipes, many of which will definitely please your liking and will be included in the home menu.
Eggplant salad
Eggplant recipes are striking in their variety, but it is the salad from this fruit that is very popular with housewives, as a seasonal dish or as a sure way to prepare for the winter.
- Caloric content per 100 g - 143 kcal.
- Servings - 3-4
- Cooking time - 2 hours
Ingredients:
- Eggplant - 5 kg
- Garlic - 4 heads
- Parsley and dill
- Vegetable oil - 300 g
- Vinegar - 60 g
- Salt - 4 tablespoons
- Water - 3 l
Step by step preparation of eggplant salad:
- First, we remove the peel from the eggplant and remove the stalk. Then cut into cubes with a side of about 2 cm with a sharp knife.
- Pour water into a deep saucepan, add vinegar and a little salt.
- Add the eggplants to the resulting solution and boil them for 15 minutes, and then filter through a colander, give a few minutes so that the excess liquid is glass.
- Meanwhile, chop the garlic, parsley and dill.
- Mix the eggplants with garlic and herbs, season with the right amount of oil and mix very thoroughly so that the garlic-oil sauce is evenly distributed over the blue ones.
- After that, we lay out the fragrant eggplant mixture in the jars. We put on sterilization for a symbolic 5 minutes. After that, roll up the lids tightly.
Korean style eggplant
Especially for lovers of spicy Korean and Central Asian cuisine, we offer an original recipe for making delicious eggplants. Of course, the list of essential foods will include those that add spice.
Ingredients:
- Eggplant of any size - 1 kg
- Onions - 200 g
- Carrots - 300 g
- Bulgarian sweet pepper - 150 g
- Pepper "Ratunda" - 150 g
- Garlic - 1 head
- Vegetable oil - 0.5 tbsp.
- Vinegar - 50 g
- Seasoning "For Korean carrots" - 1 pack
Step-by-step cooking of eggplant in Korean:
- Wash the eggplants thoroughly. It is not necessary to remove the peel at all. Next, they should be cut into half rings with a thickness of 1 cm.
- Peel the onion, cut in half and cut into strips of sufficient size.
- Carrots can be grated. To do this, it is advisable to use a special grater designed for cooking carrots in Korean. Or cut it into strips along with the peppers.
- Place all vegetables in a deep container. Pour oil on top, add vinegar and season to taste. Add pre-chopped garlic to this. Mix everything well and put in the refrigerator overnight.
- When serving Korean-style eggplants, you can add chopped parsley to the table. It is noteworthy that this salad is perfectly stored all winter if it is rolled up in sterilized jars.
Eggplant rolls
The most remarkable thing about this dish is that the filling can be very varied - at your discretion, taste and color. Eggplant rolls always look spectacular and will suit even a festive table.
Ingredients:
- Eggplant - 1 kg
- Eggs - 4 pcs.
- Mayonnaise - 1 pack
- Processed cheese - 2 pcs.
- Garlic - 3 cloves
- Sweet pepper - 1 pc.
- Frying oil
Step by step preparation of eggplant rolls:
- Well washed eggplants should be cut lengthwise into long plates. The ideal width varies between 0.5-1 cm.
- Salt, let stand for a few minutes, and then fry on both sides.
- Simultaneously boil hard-boiled eggs, cool them and grate with a fine grater together with processed cheese.
- We put the resulting egg-cheese mixture into a deep container, add mayonnaise and squeeze the garlic into this mass. Mix everything thoroughly.
- Cut sweet peppers into not very thin strips. The length of the straws should be approximately equal to the width of the eggplant rolls.
- Grease the resulting eggplant slices along the entire length with an egg mass. Put peppercorn on one edge and twist the roll.
- After placing the dish in a container suitable for serving, you can decorate it with herbs or grated cheese.
Eggplant caviar
This is a very popular recipe not only for harvesting for the winter. Eggplant caviar contains many vegetables, which retain most of the beneficial elements when stewed.
Ingredients:
- White eggplant - 3 kg
- Onions - 0.5 kg
- Sweet pepper - 3 pcs.
- Pepper "Ratunda" - 3 pcs.
- Carrots - 0.5 kg
- Garlic - 1 head
- Fresh tomatoes - 0.5 kg
- Parsley root - 1 pc.
- Salt, sugar and spices to taste
Step by step preparation of eggplant caviar:
- We pre-peel the eggplants. Cut into small cubes and fill with water and salt.
- Chop the onion and lightly fry in a deep frying pan.
- Rinse the carrots and parsley root thoroughly, rub on a medium grater and add to the onion. We also send pepper pre-cut into cubes here.
- Processing tomatoes involves blanching. To remove the peel from the fruit, pour boiling water over them and immediately place them in cold water. So the surface layer can be easily removed. The resulting pulp must be cut into cubes and also sent to the pan. The extinguishing time is 10 minutes.
- We squeeze the eggplants to remove excess moisture, place them in a stew pan, add vegetable oil and the prepared stewed vegetable mixture.
- The caviar is almost ready, it remains to add your favorite spices to taste and stew everything for 20-30 minutes.
Some housewives prefer to use eggplant and zucchini in equal proportions when cooking this caviar.
Eggplant appetizer with tomatoes
This is one of the most versatile ways to make an eggplant and tomato snack. It is very easy to prepare and the process does not take long.
Ingredients:
- Small eggplants - 1 kg
- Tomatoes - 0.5 kg
- Mayonnaise - 1 pack
- Garlic - 2 cloves
- Parsley and dill
Step-by-step preparation of an eggplant and tomato appetizer:
- Preparing the eggplant. To do this, wash them, cut them into rings 1 cm wide and leave them in salted water for half an hour.
- Squeeze the settled fruits well and fry in vegetable oil.
- Cut the tomatoes into rings.
- Chop the garlic and herbs with a knife.
- For an effective serving on the table, the ingredients must be laid out on top of each other in turn. The order is as follows: a circle of eggplant, tomato, mayonnaise. And then sprinkle with garlic and herbs.
A quick recipe for eggplant for the winter
This recipe shows you how to cook eggplant for the winter in the fastest way, using a minimum of ingredients. The blue ones turn out to be incredibly tasty and disperse very quickly, leaving no one indifferent.
Ingredients:
- Small eggplants - 5 kg
- Salt - 4 tablespoons
- Sugar - 1 tablespoon
- Vinegar - 30 g
- Water - 3 l
Step-by-step cooking eggplant for the winter according to a quick recipe:
- Remove pedicels from eggplants and send fruits for short cooking in salted water. As soon as they become soft, we take out and put in sterilized jars.
- You can first boil the brine in water with the addition of salt, sugar and vinegar.
- Pour the eggplant with brine and roll up, wrap the jars with a warm blanket and leave to cool completely.
- When the time comes, eggplants are served chopped with sunflower oil and fresh onions.
Eggplant pizza
When cooked properly, eggplants are very mushroom-like. That is why, having prepared pizza from this fruit, you can enjoy the unique taste and please your loved ones with an unusual dish. For connoisseurs of homemade food, it is recommended that you make your own pizza dough, but a store base is fine too.
Ingredients:
- Base for pizza - 1 pc.
- Medium eggplants - 2 pcs.
- Onions - 1 pc.
- Bulgarian pepper - 1 pc.
- Hard cheese - 200 g
- Mayonnaise - 1 pack
- Ketchup - 1 pack
- Mushroom seasoning - 1 tsp.
- Butter - 100 g
Step-by-step preparation of eggplant pizza:
- Peel the eggplants and cut into small cubes.
- Preheat a deep frying pan, melt the butter on it, and then put the eggplants. Fry should be over low heat.
- Chop the onions and peppers and add to the pan.
- It is necessary to simmer the resulting mixture for 30 minutes, then add the mushroom seasoning.
- Warm the pizza base slightly in the microwave, brush with a thin layer of mayonnaise, then ketchup.
- Put the stewed vegetables on the base and sprinkle with grated cheese.
- The pizza should be baked in the oven as usual. The baking time is 20-30 minutes. The required temperature is 180 degrees.
Ratatouille with eggplant
The world famous casserole made from the simplest vegetables is so popular for a reason. The recipe is extremely simple, but the dish is able to satisfy the most picky gourmets.
Ingredients:
- Medium zucchini - 1 pc.
- Medium eggplant - 1 pc.
- Tomatoes - 0.5 kg
- Vegetable or olive oil - 50 ml
- Herbs and spices to taste
- Onions - 2 pcs.
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Garlic - 2 cloves
- Sweet Bulgarian pepper - 1 pc.
Step by step preparation of Ratatouille:
- Onions and garlic, peppers and carrots, as well as half of the tomatoes must be chopped, simmered in a pan with a little oil. Then grind the resulting mixture with a blender - this will be our sauce.
- Wash the eggplants, zucchini and the second part of the tomatoes thoroughly and cut into slices, the thickness of which should not exceed 1 cm.
- A suitable-sized form with high sides should be greased with oil, and then, one by one, lay the zucchini, eggplant and tomatoes on it. Season with salt, sprinkle and pour over the prepared sauce evenly. Cover the tin with foil and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes. In this case, the temperature should be 170-180 degrees.
Eggplant baked with cheese
Oven-baked eggplants absorb less oil, thus keeping them low in calories. This recipe is quite capable of delighting those who want to lose a little weight.
Ingredients:
- Eggplant - 2 pcs.
- Hard cheese - 100 g
- Soy sauce - 4 tablespoons
- Grated or dry ginger - 0.5 tsp
- Vegetable oil - 4 tablespoons
- Parsley and sesame seeds for garnish
Step by step preparation of eggplant baked with cheese:
- Rinse the eggplants, remove the stem and cut in half lengthwise.
- With a knife we make a shallow mesh of incisions along the entire surface of the fruit.
- Before cooking eggplant, mix vegetable oil, ginger and soy sauce, grease the flat side of the blue one liberally, sprinkle with cheese and sesame seeds on top.
- Put the eggplants with cheese on baking paper and put them in the oven for 25 minutes. This dish is best served cold.
Stuffed eggplant
Due to its elastic structure, this fruit can be stuffed with absolutely any filling, but the most successful will be eggplants with minced meat and cheese. The meat juice gives the vegetable more juiciness, and the cheese gives it an exquisite crust.
Ingredients:
- Eggplant - 4 pcs.
- Minced pork - 200 g
- Minced chicken - 200 g
- Onions - 1 pc.
- Garlic - 1 clove
- Parmesan cheese - 150 g
- Vegetable oil - 15 ml
- Salt and spices to taste
Cooking stuffed eggplant step by step:
- Rinse the eggplants, cut in half in length, remove the peel and seeds, leaving the partitions 1-1.5 cm thick.
- Grease the resulting halves of the fruit with oil.
- Chop the onion and garlic thoroughly.
- Mix different types of minced meat, salt and add onion, garlic and spices to them.
- Divide the prepared mixture into eggplant “boats”, sprinkle with grated cheese on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Serve eggplants, garnish with herbs or other vegetables.
Eggplant video recipes
With a bit of imagination using eggplant, you can cook almost any dish: soups, lasagna, meatballs, pie and even chips. The variety of recipes makes it possible to understand that the blue ones rightfully occupy a worthy place in world culinary.
