Cook Eggplant

Eggplant is a vitamin-rich, high-fiber fruit (yes, it’s technically a fruit) often featured in southern American, Italian, Chinese and Persian recipes. When grilled, eggplant has a firm, satisfying texture, making it a popular substitute for meat in vegetarian dishes. Read on to learn how to prepare eggplant using five popular methods: frying, stir-frying, grilling, baking and boiling.

  • Prep time (Fried): 15-25 minutes
  • Cook time: 5-10 minutes
  • Total time: 20-35 minutes

Steps

Fried Eggplant

  1. Wash the eggplants and slice them into 1/2-inch slices.
  2. Lay the eggplants on a platter lined with paper towels and sprinkle them with salt. Allow them to rest for about 15 minutes, until they've released their moisture. Pat the slices with paper towels, turn them over, and repeat on the other side.
  3. Prepare a batter of a cup of flour, 1/4 cup cornmeal, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 pepper. Mix the ingredients together in a shallow bowl. Double the ingredients for a larger amount of eggplant, and add more or fewer spices to taste.
  4. In a separate small bowl, whisk one or two eggs together. Add more eggs if you're frying a large amount of eggplant.
  5. Heat cooking oil in a large skillet or dutch oven to 350°F (176.6°C).
    • Use about 1/4” (.6cm) of oil, or enough to float the eggplant pieces in a skillet.
    • Peanut oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil are good choices for deep frying. Do not use olive oil, as it cannot be heated to a high temperature.
  6. Working one slice at a time, dip the eggplant pieces in the egg, then coat them in the flour mixture.
    • Tap the eggplant slices on the side of the flour bowl to remove excess flour.
    • Make sure each piece is thoroughly coated in flour.
    • For an extra-thick batter, coat each piece in egg and flour, then coat them a second time in egg and flour.
  7. Use tongs to place the battered eggplant slices into the hot frying oil.
    • Don't overfill the pan. Fry one layer of eggplant slices at a time, and repeat with an additional batch if necessary.
  8. Let the eggplant slices cook until lightly brown on one side. Flip them and let the other side brown.
  9. Remove the fried eggplant slices with a slotted spatula to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
  10. Serve the fried eggplant immediately with the sauce of your choice.
    • Fried eggplant gets soggy if it sits too long. It should be eaten right away, while it's still hot.
    • Try serving fried eggplant with marinara sauce or Make Tzatziki.

Stir-Fried Eggplant

  1. Wash the eggplants, peel them, and cut them into bite-sized pieces.
  2. Lay the eggplant pieces on a platter lined with paper towels and sprinkle them with salt. Allow them to rest for about 15 minutes, until they've released their moisture. Pat the slices with paper towels, turn them over, and repeat on the other side.
  3. Heat a little cooking oil in a wok or shallow frying pan.
    • Stir-frying is done with a very small amount of oil. Use no more than a tablespoon.
    • Heat the oil until it is very hot, just before it smokes is ideal.
  4. Add the eggplant and other ingredients of your choice, like chopped onions, snow peas, or carrots.
  5. Season the stir fry with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  6. Stir the eggplant and other ingredients constantly and quickly with a spatula or spoon until cooked to the lightly browned stage.
  7. Serve over white or brown rice.

Grilled Eggplant

  1. Wash the eggplants and slice them into 1-inch slices.
  2. Lay the eggplants on a platter lined with paper towels and sprinkle them with salt. Allow them to rest for about 15 minutes, until they've released their moisture. Pat the slices with paper towels, turn them over, and repeat on the other side.
  3. Using a basting brush, brush both sides of the eggplant slices with olive oil.
  4. Sprinkle on the spices of your choice. Consider cumin, paprika, or garlic powder in addition to a pinch of salt and pepper.
  5. Place the oiled eggplant slices on a medium hot grill.
    • As an alternative, use the broiler in your oven.
  6. Cook the eggplant slices for about 3 minutes on each side. The eggplant is ready when the meat is soft and the edges are brown and crispy.
  7. Remove the eggplant slices with a spatula onto a plate.

Baked Eggplant

  1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC).
  2. Wash the eggplants and slice them into 1-inch slices or chunks.
    • Eggplant can be cut in half, cut in chunks or made into a fan shape for baking.
    • Generally the peel is left on when the eggplant is halved to hold it together after cooking.
    • When eggplant is to be cut into pieces for a recipe it is generally peeled first.
  3. Oil a casserole dish or baking pan with olive oil. Lay the eggplant pieces in the pan, taking care not to overlap the pieces.
  4. Bake the eggplant until the edges and top are brown, about 20 minutes.
  5. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

Boiled Eggplant

  1. Wash, peel, and chop the eggplant into chunks. Alternatively, you may boil an unpeeled eggplant whole.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil on the stove.
    • Use 2 parts water to 1 part eggplant pieces.
    • If you're boiling the eggplant whole, use enough water to submerge the entire eggplant.
  3. Add the sliced or whole eggplant to the boiling water.
    • If you're boiling a whole eggplant, poke holes in the skin to keep the eggplant from exploding before you add it to the water.
  4. Cook at a slow simmer until the eggplant is softened, about 8-15 minutes.
  5. Season the eggplant with salt, pepper and additional spices of your choice.



Tips

  • Salting eggplant before cooking removes some of the bitterness, especially with older eggplants.
  • Try grilled eggplant as a burger substitute.
  • Eggplant is sometimes called aubergine in older cookbooks.
  • Eggplant goes well with vegetables like tomatoes, onions and peppers and with spices such as allspice, garlic, oregano, basil, and chili powder.
  • The secret to frying eggplant is to get everything prepared beforehand, get the frying pan hot and fry each eggplant slice as soon as it is dipped in the batter.

Things You’ll Need

  • Eggplant
  • Paring knife or vegetable peeler
  • Sharp knife and cutting board
  • Baking pan
  • Skillet
  • Grill
  • Salt
  • Spices and vegetables of your choosing
  • Paper towels
  • Plate
  • Slotted spatula
  • Basting brush
  • Tongs

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Sources and Citations

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