Eggplant Selection Information | Nutritional Information | Tips & Trivia
Scientific Binomial Name:
Baked, microwaved, roasted or fried.
Good quality eggplant should be firm, dark-colored with smooth & shiny skin with a fresh looking green "cap" on the stem end.
Eggplant can be any size from small to quite large and varieties will vary from egg-shaped to almost round.
For the most common variety, a small to medium eggplant is best with larger eggplant tending to be more bitter and less tender.
Avoid product that is soft, has blemishes, discolored marks or soft spots.
Eggplant with wrinkled and dull colored skin indicates old product.
Always store eggplants in your refrigerator.
Handle as little as possible and only wash just prior to use.
In general, vegetables will not ripen further after harvest.
Amount per serving
Eggplant will often require that slices be salted before cooking in order to draw out some of the natural bitterness.
Originally an Oriental ornamental plant, eggplant got its name from yellow and white fruited varieties with egg-sized fruits. Eggplant were brought to America by Spaniards as "berengenas," meaning apples of love.
Ladies in the high society of China once made black dye from dark eggplant skins and used it to stain their teeth to a black luster, a fashionable cosmetic use.
In India and Medieval Europe, eggplant was credited with remarkable properties as a love potion. By the 16th Century, northern Europeans were calling eggplants, "mad apples" in the belief that consumption would cause insanity.
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