What can I do with my eggplant please

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gel91
gel91 Posts: 309
in Food and Nutrition
Hi what can i do with my eggplant please, I've no idea what so ever how to prep or cook it.

Can i eat it like other vegetables, peas, brussell sprouts ect or does it have to go into a meal? moussaka is the only thing it seems familiar from and i've never made that before. I read somewhere it takes one hour to prep so there is no juice inside??

Clueless!

I'd like to try it for my dinner tonight so if anyone has any nice ideas that would be great.

Replies

  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
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    It's a bit different from other veg, largely because it has a high water content, and acts like a sponge! You could slice it into rounds and shallow fry, but it WILL absorb an awful lot of oil. A variation I like to do is to cut it inot rounds and then bake those in the oven for 20 minutes. Drizzle them with a strongly flavoured dressing (oil, lemon, garlic) for a Middle eastern chermoula starter.

    They cook pretty quickly oin the microwave - blast for 5-8 minutes depending on size, and either scoop out the flesh and mix with tahini and garlic for a dip/ spread, or add the chunks to a tagine type stew.

    You can split them in half lengthwise and stuff them.
  • hartmamp
    hartmamp Posts: 80 Member
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    I saw a great recipe yesterday somewhere for a veggie lasagna where eggplant was used in place of noodles. My sister in law made it and said it was fantastic.
  • frenchfacey
    frenchfacey Posts: 237 Member
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    im a big time snacker and i LOVE egg plant dips, or babaghanoush dips, they are so awesome they have this wonderful velvet-y meat-y texture.

    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-eggplant-spread-recipe/index.html

    that sounds awesome, and i dip veggies into it, or use it on a sandwich as a spread with some chicken and veggies etc

    mmm time for breakfast
  • JenRunTriHappyGirl
    JenRunTriHappyGirl Posts: 521 Member
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    My husband and I love eggplant pizzas. I just googled eggplant recipes and found it. Super yummy!
  • gel91
    gel91 Posts: 309
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    thanks for the replies

    my cooker at the moment isn't working so i can't fry them up! i do have a halogen oven though so baking them is an option which sounds nice, microwave also is.

    those are some nice ideas i will give one of them a shot though i'm not sure which one yet!! eggplant pizza sounds different, and i love making dough! :-)
  • missreba
    missreba Posts: 3
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    Yesterday I diced an eggplant, salted it heavily and put it in a colander with a weight on top. This takes out a lot of the bitterness. I left it while I prepared the rest of the dish.

    Sauteed chopped onion, red bell pepper (green also, if you have it), garlic, zucchini and a little celery. Added the fully rinsed eggplant. (all this in a little evoo). Then I added a can of crushed tomatoes, a lot of dried oregano and dried basil, salt and pepper. Let it simmer awhile.

    When closer to serving time I added a carton of quartered mushrooms.

    Sauteed a couple of rounds of tube polenta, put them in the bottom of a bowl, covered with the eggplant and added a tablespoon of grated parm on top.

    Proportions of the various ingredients are variable--to your liking.

    Have a lot left over and it will only get better!
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
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    Put them on a stainer with a papertowl covering them and a plate on the paper towel.. that will squeeze the water out. I never do this.. but that's what you do if you want to .

    I bake them or pan fry them with oatflour, parmesan chili pepper garlic and whatever other spices I feel like adding, then dip them in a home made dip like fries or turn them into eggplant parm.

    Can also cut in half and fill with meat and/or veggies and bake (stuffed eggplant)

    Good to sautee too

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