Cooking with Eggplant

trashcan

It may come to that, R1.

I have never noticed a foul smell from eggplant before, but I've grown up eating it all of my life. Maybe you got a spoiled one, OP?

throw whatever you have away. Fresh eggplant does not have a repulsive odor.

It smells kind of sweet, but also just a little like mushrooms. It has been in the fridge for a couple of weeks. Maybe I'll try again.

R5/OP, raw eggplant doesn't have a foul smell, but it does have a somewhat bitter and unusual smell. If you're not used to it, you might think it was off.

The clue is in the flesh. It should be firm and off-white to cream-colored. The seeds are brown, but the flesh should not be. If it feel soft or there is a lot of brown in the flesh (a little bit is ok if the skin is bruised, which is easy to do), then it has spoiled and you should throw it away.

Eggplant is gross. One of those things I can't eat.

Eggplant is vile. Anything you need to sweat before you cook it should never be consumed.

Ratatouille, baba ghanoush, eggplant parm?

How can you not like eggplant.

Jesus you queens.

Eggplant is "fine" as a substitute for other things like meat or pasta. I'm not saying it is as good (it isn't) but it works.

a couple of weeks? Honey throw it away. Most food, except smelly cheese, that stinks means it's bad. throw it away.

An ex-boyfriend of mine taught English in rural Romania for a summer a few years ago. He told me that whilst he was out there, the locals used to eat Aubergine most days. It was everywhere. He got so fed up of eating it.

They did produce some good Tuica for home hooch though. Was killer stuff he said.

Why would you think you can keep vegetables sitting around for a couple of weeks?

In the future OP - buy eggplant and use it within 5 days or so. Peel it. Slice it and salt it in a colander. this sweats out some of the "humors" . Rinse and then pat dry.

simply brush the slices with fragrant oil oil with salt and maybe a tiny bit of garlic. Broil it in the oven. That's it. Then you can add it to sandwiches or dice it and add it to sauces towards the end - enough to heat up, but not fall apart.

[quote]It has been in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

EEEWWW!!!

[quote]Eggplant is "fine" as a substitute for other things like meat or pasta.

It also tastes good [italic]with[/italic] pasta.

You have to cook it when it's fresh, not when it's been sitting around for weeks. My Mom used to make wonderful French-fried eggplant that we always loved. You'd slice it into long chunks, salt it and let it sit a little while, then dip in seasoned flour and deep fry. She'd always serve it with cocktail sauce. I almost never deep-fry things though, so I'd probably make Imam Bayildi if I had a couple of eggplants waiting to be cooked.

Love me some 🍆. Long, thick 🍆.

R16, that's a Turkish dish, isn't it? I made it once and it's delicious.

Eggplant sandwich. Always a big seller as a lunch special!

R18, Yes, it's an Ottoman dish found in Turkey and other countries with an Ottoman influence, so there are nice regional variations. The name means "the imam fainted", and there are different legends as to why he fainted, usually regarding the richness of the dish. I love it since I feel indulgent even when I'm avoiding meat and/or carbohydrates. I love baba ghanouj and ratatouille for the same reasons.

I had intended to use it as a substitute for pasta and make it into some kind of lasagna, but I have thrown this one out. I will try one more time, but if it smells even close to the same I don't think I can work with it. Is there something that will work better as a pasta substitute?

OP - I used to hate eggplant until I moved to Romania and my roommate buys them fresh from the farmer's market, and pokes a few holes in them with a fork and wraps them in aluminum foil and puts them straight on the burner of the stove above an iron thing they have out here. She once they crackle and and she sees they are shriveled and giving off a nice, smoky smell she takes off, takes the foil off and, puts them piping hot into the sink in a colander. When they cool off just a bit, she essentially peels off the skin with a smooth snag from the tail. After she leaves the insides to strain out the bitter juices. Next, you chop them or put in a blender with chopped red onion, salt, vinegar or lemon, and add some mayonnaise and puree them to a smooth paste. In the process you can adjust and add garlic, more salt or more lemon or mayo. The result is a spread that you can out on toast alone or with a some feta sprinkled on top. Amazing. I am making that and a local spinach puree and it is amazing.

[Quote]but I have thrown this one out. I will try one more time, but if it smells even close to the same I don't think I can work with it

Perhaps next time don't leave a fresh, perishable vegetable to sit around for weeks r21?

It's not a cheeto, it will go bad.

This is a perfect example of "how did the first people know how to eat that?" Oh, Grog, I picked this purple fruit today! Lets try it! Blech! Bitter and spongy. Tastes like Ebba's old cunt! Let's mine some salt and if we don't suffocate in the cave trying to get some we can apply it to this fruit and see if that helps! Then we could cook it, if you would ever get off your ass and invent Fire🔥

My fave Indonesian dish - terong balado. Yum

A lesbian couple at work make miso eggplant "steak" and cauliflower steaks...very good but personally I could go for the beef instead of the steak subs.

[quote] Is there something that will work better as a pasta substitute?

Spaghetti squash?

To substiute as lasagne noodles -- 1/8 in. strips of sliced zucchini?

Maybe I'll try the zucchini. I was traumatized by spaghetti squash as a tween, though. I pretty much loathe all squash, though I can stand the zucchini usually.

Why not just eat the pasta? Lol

R16, you don't have to deep-fry it. Follow the same process, but heat 1/4" or less of oil in a non-stick skillet and fry the slices, turning one or twice until both sides are browned and the eggplant is tender.

Incidentally, you can also bread slices with the usual flour-egg-breadcrumb coating, let sit in the fridge for 20 minutes or more to set, and then fry in the same way. It's a lot of trouble because of all those eggplant slices that need salting, rinsing, draining, breading and frying, but it's really delicious. Leftovers can be eaten cold the next day in a sandwich. This was a summer dish in our household when I was growing up. We'd have it with local corn on the cob and sliced homegrown tomatoes. Mmm ... so good.

eggplant parm is a standard sandwich in the NY region. What are people going on about. Are eggplants really exotic in flyoverstan? Eggplant dips and salads are popular in 1/4 of the world, at least.

It should not stink. Make babaganoush.

R15, pasta alla norma is one of the best pasta dishes unknown in the US.

DataLounge is the only place where the gays discuss how gross eating eggplant is - but also how delicious eating ass and cum is.

I am losing the battle with diabeet-us. I have to count carbs or it's Insulin City for me. The amount of lasagna I can have and still be compliant is miniscule, so I'm looking for compromises. Giving up pizza is even worse! I tried coconut flour crust, but it was vile! 😠

you cut it in slices then salt it and let it stand for about 20 minutes. then you rinse and pat it dry. put it on a cookie sheet, drizzle a little bit of olive oil and put it in the oven at 425 for about 15 minutes. it ought to look a teensy bit scorched at the edges. Remove. Now, I will often take ground lamb that I've seasoned as for Mussaka with a bit of cinnamon, chili powder, very small bit of oregano. Brown it and drain excess grease. You've added garlic, chopped onions, and tomatoes, and a small can of tomato sauce. Cut your roasted eggplant into smaller pieces and add it, along with white potatoes you've cut into chunks. Cook it on low heat until the potatoes are tender. You can add a Bechamel sauce to the concoction but I don't. It is sort of like eating chili but it is more flavored like Mussaka. I love it. You can freeze left overs.

R28, just make sure to salt the zucchini slices -- same as salting eggplant and then patting it dry.

R33 - another Sicilian eggplant dish I love to make is caponata

I love baba ganoush. I love it better than humus. But it's a pain to make. You need three or four egg plants to make enough for people to have. But that raisted flavor with a bit of garlic is just amazing with Pita bread.

I love baba ghanoush but man, does it pack a punch of fiber! Eggplant is loaded with fiber but that's a good thing. Or maybe I just eat too much.

R40, hummus is high in fiber, too. The entire Levant must be as regular as clockwork.

Hummous makes me constipated but I love it so much. It's quite a dilemma.

Hummus bloats me. But I can eat baba ganoush or even white Tuscan bean Hummus and I have no problem. It's those pesky garabanzo beans, gurl.

stinky, bitter, and a pain in the ass to cook. keep it, muslims!

R38, I love caponata!

I make a really good vegetarian curry with chick peas, sweet potato and spinach. I discovered that adding an aubergine makes a very nice difference to the texture. I make baba ghanoush and caponata too.

I love middle eastern food and the men. But the food always makes me bloated, irritable and gassy. I often wonder if that whole area has this problem and that's why they're always fighting. No one can be in a good mood there there are like 9 farts trapped in your middle gut and then suddenly they decide to start terrorizing your asshole and nostrils.

Lesbianese classic Babaganush is delicious. Made from baked eggplant.

Moussaka, Greek eggplant casserole.

Recently, I made a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe for eggplant -- you roast the eggplant halves, then top with ground lamb that's been cooked with spices, tomato paste, and pine nuts, and bake again. Delicious.

Moussaka indeed, it truly is tasty.

R50, yes, moussaka is delicious but so much trouble to make. I wish I had a good, old-fashioned Greek taverna-style restaurant near me so I could get it as carryout.

Olive oil, onion, garlic, eggplant, roasted red or yellow pepper, tomato, anchovy, capers, olives, parsley, salt, pepper -- chop it all up same size, garlic whole and anchovy finely chopped throw in saute pan, cook covered for a while

uncover, reduce if required

take off heat

add parmigiano reggiano, pecorino sardo, basil

toss with pasta for at least a few min

serve with additional cheese at the table for the cheese people

Yumsy.

Ratatouille?

I like squash but eggplant has a weird bitter and fatty taste to me. And it turns an unappetizing greyish green hue when cooked.

I take all the spices and ingredients for moussaka and instead of assembling them I make it into a sort of stew. Same flavors no fuss and I love it.

I love eggplant (or aubergine for you feriners), My eggplant parmesan is raved about far and wide.

And OP if you have an eggplant that stinks when you cut it up it must be old and rotten. Bin it!

Change can be very daunting. That's why you should do a lot of research before cooking with ingredients which you have never used before. First impressions are very important. And it's so easy to fail at an attempt to, say, substitute meat with something else and see it as a sign / excuse to go back to the real thing.

I keep planning to make eggplant parmesan, then backing out at the last minute because I don't want to do all that frying. I don't like cleaning up afterwards at all. It's so much easier to roast it in the oven and make Baba Ghanoush or Eggplant Caviar.

Also, I have never had an eggplant stink. I have never had one in the fridge for three weeks, either.

R57, to whom are you responding?

R55, but what about the bechamel? That's the best part of moussaka. Do you make the casserole and then top it with sauce? I think that could work.

some vegetables do have a long fridge life. IME, eggplant and mushrooms go bad relatively fast.

Eggplant is an oil sponge (when frying), so I don’t fry it. I do like eggplant, tho.

OP, good luck with your diabeetus.

Cook's Country recently did "Eggplant Pecorino" (a twist on E. Parmesan), taking their inspiration from a restaurant in Ohio that stacks thinly sliced eggplant and uses romano instead of parmesan.

I make this quite often if I’m making a Korean meal. It’s delicious and simple to make. Maangchi should have her own show.

Make your favorite babaganoush recipe, but instead of roasting the eggplants, slice them, skin-on into thick slices, then salt and let drain as normal, then put on the grill with tons of olive oil and cook until very brown. The skin peels right off and toss the eggplant flesh right into the food processor to make your dip.

Divoon!

That's so funny you should bring this up, OP. I dreamed about a memory I had long forgotten the other night. When I was 8 or 9, my beloved Aunt, who was in her twenties at the time, made Eggplant Parmesan and asked if I would like to try some. I admired this aunt like no other. She was tall and tan and lovely with long, shiny blond hair and had been to Greece and Antigua by the time she was 25. The meal looked and smelled delicious, just like any other wonderful Italian meal I had eaten...only it wasn't. I tried my best to eat it, but she could tell I didn't like the taste or the texture. I remember her turning it into an etiquette lesson for me, in a very loving way, about how to handle situations like that. (Politely eating a few bites and then covering the rest with your napkin). 45 years later, I still love that gal. She also introduced me to Baklava, which was love at first taste.

[quote] 45 years later, I still love that gal.

I'll bet 45 years later, you ARE "That Girl."

R62, that looks quite good!

It would be an honor, R65.

Bitches I searched for this thread just to find that recipe for Imam Bayildi. Gonna make some tonight, to eat it tomorrow. Love you guys.

What about the controversy regarding whether an egg plant is a vegetable or an animal?

R68, which recipe are you using?

Trader Joe's used to have a pop top can of tomato with eggplant and onion that I would mix with quinoa, mushrooms and onions and stuff into green peppers and bake. I don't know if they still sell the stuff but it would probably be pretty easy to make.

^ Walnuts mixed in was good too.

Eggplant - no real nutritional value. Waste of time.