Eggplant

This topic may be on another part of the forums...but my SO and I have just discovered eggplant...anyone have any good recipes? And what's the deal with the seeds - are you supposed to eat them?

Yes, you can certainly eat the seeds, but it is best to try to pick eggplants that have fewer seeds. When selecting eggplants, if you look at the base of the eggplant, try to find the ones that are less "concave". I cannot guarantee that this is accurate, but I have been told that the ones that are more concave on the bottom/base are the ones that have more seeds.

In terms of recipes, let me give you the simplest one. Get your grill started (charcoal or gas--your choice). Mix up a batch of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and pressed garlic. I cannot give you the proportions, since I do not measure, and I just do everything to taste. If you like it more savory (as I do), then go heavy on the balsamic. If you like it milder, then go heavier on the oil.

Now, cut your eggplant into slices about 1/4 inch thick. Brush the eggplant slices generously with the mixture. Oil the grill surface (peanut oil is best, due to its high smoke point, but canola is also ok), and put your slices on the grill. When they have nice grill-marks on one side, use your tongs or a spatula to flip them over. Just a couple of minutes on each side is usually all that is needed.

I think that you will be amazed at how good this tastes. If you are grilling any meat, this is a very easy side dish that can be cooked toward the end of the meat's cooking time.

Let me know how you like this!

Stuffed Eggplant on the Half Shell
Fred Sauceman
Johnson City, Tennessee

This recipe has 1960s written all over it, from the reliance on Ritz crackers to the silver knife used to check for doneness. The original source is a publication called Ford Times, once published by the motor company. My Uncle Grover Graves only drove Fords. I inherited the recipe from a lady named Trula Bailey, who worked in the home of my aunt and uncle in Athens, Tennessee, for over 50 years. Eggplant was exotic and mysterious to me as a child growing up in the 1960s, and the deep purple color still is. Trula was the first person ever to serve it to me, and she gave me my first mushroom, too. She died in the winter of 2002, but her visage presides, in watercolor, over my dining room, as her outstretched hand offers guests one of her incomparable, irresistible, and irreproducible wholewheat muffins.

1 large eggplant, split lengthwise
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup celery, chopped
¼ cup onion, chopped
3 ounces butter
2 eggs, well-beaten
1 cup milk
½ cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup Ritz crackers, rolled, plus extra for topping

Scoop insides from eggplant and cook in salt water until tender. Drain, chop, and season with salt and pepper. Cook celery and onion in butter until tender. Add with remaining ingredients to mixture. Return mixture to shells and place in baking dish. Sprinkle top with additional cracker crumbs. Bake one hour in a 350-degree oven, or until a silver knife inserted comes out clean. Serves four.

Sauceman, that sounds delicious. It made me want to make a quick trip to the grocery store and purchase a eggplant.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Tedbear's recipe is more like my own, and I love eggplant grilled on the grill. it's fantastic, and the only way I can stand to eat it.

I did the grilled eggplant on monday.. but my best recipe for eggplant is from Cafe'Bastille in SF...

Cut an eggplant into slices about on inch thick, salt and set aside to get all the water out of it...
Meanwhile, cream a small log of goat cheese with equal parts honey, if you like it less sweet, cut down on honey, I do this to taste... add in your favorite herbs, set aside...
wipe off eggplant and dip in olive oil, be careful as eggplant will soak up as much oil as you allow, and you don't want this greasy. put on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees until eggplant is tender.
Remove from oven and put a teaspoon of cheese mix on each slice and put back into oven until cheese is bubbling.

I really, really love eggplant but I can't cook it. Grilling I suppose I could do, but a lot of recipes call for frying and doing that without ending up with a ball of grease requires experience. Still, among myn favorite eggplant things to be cooked by those who know how are the old standards baba ganoush (middle eastern eggplant dip), eggplant parmesan (like veal parmesan but with eggplant) and moussaka. Here's a version of the latter if you want to try it (I don't care for zucchini--I think I'd just use more eggplant and most recipes have only the eggplant anyway). Just Google the others to get lots of recipes:

quote:

MOUSSAKA
Printed from COOKS.COM
1 lg. yellow onion, chopped
4 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 c. red wine
1/2 c. tomato sauce
3 tbsp. chopped parsley
1 egg yolk
6 tbsp. flour
5 tbsp. butter
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 eggs
2 med. size eggplant
1 lb. zucchini
1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in large skillet. Add onion and cook over slow heat until soft but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add 2 lbs. ground round beef and cook over moderately high heat until lightly browned, breaking meat into small pieces. Blend together 3 tablespoons of tomato paste, 1/4 cup red wine, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, 3 tablespoons of chopped parsley, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add to the meat and simmer about 5 minutes to reduce the liquid a little, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and let cool. Slightly beat 2 eggs and stir them into the meat. Cut 2 eggplants into 1/2 inch slices, cut zucchini in half lengthwise. Dust with flour, season with salt and pepper and fry until golden brown.

Moussaka should be baked in a 9x13x2 inch pan; dust pan with bread crumbs and grated cheese. Arrange 1/2 eggplant and zucchini and sprinkle with cheese. Cover with meat mixture and more cheese. Put the remaining eggplant and zucchini on top of meat. Cover with white sauce and bake for 1 hour at 375 degrees.

White Sauce: Melt 5 tablespoons of butter; blend 6 tablespoons of flour. Add 2 cups of milk and dash of nutmeg; stir until sauce boils. Beat in egg yolk and remove from heat.

I grill it too and use the balsamic marinade - it's great. I also do lemon/garlic/s & p/ olive oil recipe and it is excellent as well.

These are great! The only time we've tried it it was grilled, but i wasn't careful slicing the eggplant and it didn't cook quite right. We will keep trying it. I really do like the flavor, it reminds me of other earthy" type flavors like mushrooms, oysters, etc, which I lOve! Thanks for the suggestions!

I happen to be staying at the epicenter of the eggplant world -- Connecticut.

I actually overdosed on some eggplant and ricotta masterpiece today (free as a happy hour dish) ...

I am always humbled when I try -- except if I defer to the Trader Joes' frozen variety.

You are correct. Eggplant (WHEN DONE RIGHT) is the best.

As an rookie, try making egglant zucchini dishes.

This one's killer:

Imam Bayaldi

They say the Imam fainted when served this delectable eggplant dish. Keep smelling salts on hand just in case your guests get lightheaded.

2 medium round eggplants
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
1 large onion, sliced in rounds
1 red, green or gold bell pepper sliced in rounds
1 15 oz canned tomatoes, undrained
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 chopped Italian parsley
2 teaspoons non-hydrogenated margarine
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 lemon, sliced, for garnish
sprig of parsley, for garnish

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice the eggplant into 1/2 inch rounds. (Peeling is optional.) Salt the eggplant slices and set aside for about 20 minutes and let them sweat. Rinse and pat dry. Place on greased baking sheet and bake 15 to 20 minutes while preparing sauce.

Meanwhile, sauté onions and peppers in olive oil over medium heat. When onions are soft, add tomatoes and tomato paste, and 1/2 cup water. Add herbs, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Prepare topping: Melt margarine and olive oil together in small sauté pan. Add bread crumbs and 1/4 cup parsley and sauté until bread crumbs start to turn brown. Turn off heat.

Remove eggplant from oven and layer in a 13 x 9-inch dish. Smother with the sauce. Add breadcrumb topping, spreading evenly to cover. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes. Garnish with lemon slices and parsley sprig before serving.

I like to make a batch of caponata and pack some for lunch. This is the way they used to make it at the now-defunct Philly restaurant The Commissary.

CAPONATA

1/ 2 cup olive oil
3 cups diced eggplant (3/ 8" cubes), about 1 medium
1 1/ 2 cup coarsely chopped onions
1 cup celery in 1/ 4" slices
2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
3 Tbs. minced garlic
2 Tbs. tomato paste
1/ 4 cup red wine vinegar
12 small stuffed green olives, sliced into thirds
12 black olives, pitted and sliced into thirds
1/ 4 cup small capers, drained
3 Tbs. sugar
1/ 4 – 1/ 2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/ 2 cup lightly packed minced parsley
1/ 2 tsp. salt
1/ 2 tsp. pepper

In a large skillet, heat the oil. Add the eggplant and saute several minutes until partially soft. Add the onions, celery, Tomatoes and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, add the remaining ingredients, and toss lightly. Chill until ready to serve. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Notes: Pine nuts or chopped anchovies can also be added. Diced zucchini can be substituted for half of the eggplant.

Babaghanoush is easy. Poke holes in the eggplant with a fork and either bake it or broil it (or - best of all for a smoky taste - grill it) till it's soft. Then scrape the innards off the skin. Add crushed garlic, fresh lemon juice, tahini (maybe 1/2 cup), chopped parsley, and salt. Mash it all up with a fork.

Re. babaghanoush - in case it wasn't clear - you keep the innards, toss the skin...

I make eggplant Parmesan with baked eggplant slices instead of fried ones and it's not greasy at all. After salting the slices, dip them in beaten egg, then in the breadcrumb/Parmesan mixture and bake at 400 degrees for ten to twelve minutes. The slices need to be about 1/4 of an inch thick. Any thinner and the breading doesn't crisp up properly before the slices turn into shoe leather. Any thicker and they won't cook through before the breading burns. Once they're done, just layer them in a casserole with tomato sauce, put cheese on top and pop it in the oven long enough to heat through.

We love eggplant prepared just about any way possible. I like to fix a ratatouille because it's so versatile. It can be served hot or cold, over rice, noodles, spaghetti, as a crepe filling, topping for fish of all kinds or just as a side dish. There are many recipes for ratatouille but I just start out with a large dutch oven, with about 1/4 inch of olive oil. Heat that, add a large onion (white or yellow) chopped, large green pepper (or two small ones) chopped, one large eggplant (or two small ones) peeled and cut into cubes, and 2 or 3 zucchini, cut into rounds. Saute all these together until they begin to cook and brown slightly. Then add one can of tomatoes (stewed or whole or diced), 2 cloves minced garlic (more or less to taste), about 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper, and about 1/4 cup chopped parsley, a sprinkling of basil (fresh if possible), 1 teaspoon sugar, a pinch of thyme, oregano and a bay leaf. After this cooks about 30 minutes I taste and adjust the seasonings. I usually add Tabasco sauce since we like our food spicy. Cook at a simmer for about 2 or 2 1/2 hours. When adding the chopped vegetables I may add yellow squash if I have that on hand and fresh or frozen sliced okra if I have that. I like to sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese on top, too. This dish is the kind that tastes better the second day, so I usually plan to have leftovers. Hope you enjoy.

I prepare eggplant parmaisan two different ways. . . in a caserole, I slice it thick and layer it uniformly. . . then sometimes I slice it thin and stack it in a pyramid type pile.
For mideastern style eggplant I make a tomato based sauce very thick with lots of garlic and some hot bean paste and add that to fried eggplant, pepper and onion.
Indian style is hot curried with some potato chunks and tofu or cheese.

quote:

Originally posted by SouthHillbilly

I prepare eggplant parmaisan two different ways. . . in a caserole, I slice it thick and layer it uniformly. . . then sometimes I slice it thin and stack it in a pyramid type pile.
For mideastern style eggplant I make a tomato based sauce very thick with lots of garlic and some hot bean paste and add that to fried eggplant, pepper and onion.
Indian style is hot curried with some potato chunks and tofu or cheese.

Bet it smells good

[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v315/robertwalka/weekend.gif [/img]

I prepare my standard spagett sauce, add a couple of eggplants diced after they've been lightly sauteed in hot olive oil,
grind up alot of fresh reggiano and romano and mix it in, plop the mixture into a casserole, top with thickly sliced mozz and more grated hard cheese, then bake it off at 375 until the top is brown and bubbly. They can't get enough of the stuff, and by they I mean the other guys at the firehouse as well as my large family.

quote:

Originally posted by enginecapt

I prepare my standard spagett sauce, add a couple of eggplants diced after they've been lightly sauteed in hot olive oil,
grind up alot of fresh reggiano and romano and mix it in, plop the mixture into a casserole, top with thickly sliced mozz and more grated hard cheese, then bake it off at 375 until the top is brown and bubbly. They can't get enough of the stuff, and by they I mean the other guys at the firehouse as well as my large family.

Do you peel the eggplant before sauteing it?

MikeS.

I've seen pro chefs salting eggplant to remove bitterness. Any1 here do that? If so, how do you remove the salt afterwards?

MikeS.

Unless the eggplant is very large, bitter, and full of seeds, I usually skip the salting and find that it makes little difference to the finished recipe. I enjoy the slight bitterness - it's part of what makes eggplant eggplant.

I'd forgotten ALL the great things that can be made with eggplant, so this was a great reminder -- caponata, ratatouille, eggplant parmesan, baba ganoush, YUM! I just made my favorite eggplant recipe last night for supper, "Mimi's Elegant Stuffed Eggplant" from the Moosewood cookbook. It's SO good. To make it, cut a large eggplant in half lengthwise and bake it (350 degrees) cut side down on an oiled tray for 20-25 minutes until soft. Let cool enough to scoop out the insides(save the skins for stuffing). In the meantime, saute a small onion and half a green pepper, both chopped, in some olive oil. Add this to the chopped up eggplant innards, along with 2 cups of ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup parmesan, and a small chopped plum tomato. Add a clove or two of crushed or minced garlic. Mix well and refill the eggplant skins with it. Top with a mixture of 1 cup soft breadcrumbs (about two slices of bread, run through the food processor or blender) and another 1/4 cup parmesan. Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake at 350 until the topping is browned and the eggplant is heated through, about 35 minutes.