Charred eggplant

GeorgeK said:

...Charring them really changes the flavors. A charred eggplant makes a nice bed of veggies for a stew

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Indeed - :eggplant

Yes! I grill slices of eggplant and red bell peppers over coals, take off the blackened skin of the peppers, for a smoky charred flavour.

It's also good in stir frys - the heat of a proper wok gets good colour and they soak up sauce like sponges.

Also, whole eggplants, halved, roasted cut side down then scooped out and used in place of meat in 'meat'balls? So good. There's a Mario Batali recipe for eggplant balls (it's fairly logical, if you cook); they're fabulous.

Also also, did you just diss eggplant parm?

Have to admit, my first thought on reading the thread title was 'burning eggplant - best thing to do with it!'. I may, however give the charring thing a try. Someday.

I've always thought that aubergines (as we limeys call 'em) are pretty versatile things...

Thin sliced and cooked on a hot griddle with olive oil or roasted until crispy!

I also put big chunks in a green Thai curry in place of chicken - yum.

Bacchus said:

Thin sliced and cooked on a hot griddle with olive oil or roasted until crispy!

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Yes! I sometimes put them in a baking pan with chicken I'm roasting so they can crisp in the chicken drippings too.

Charred eggplant is the key ingredient in baba ganoush. Also yummy!

I didn't discover eggplant until I made Ratatouille the first time. Now I love it, especially grilled.

I only ever tried cooking eggplant once. It was so horrible that it and the pan I cooked it in all went in the trash. I did have some wonderful lasagna (in a restaurant) with slices of eggplant instead of the pasta.

MM

I have yet to find a way to prepare eggplant that I don't like. Charred is one of the ones I like best.

If eggplant (aubergine for limeys) isn't cooked long enough or left unseasoned it can be horrible, though I haven't had a bitter eggplant for years and never salt or drain it. My other favourite recipe, and I intend to see if charring the eggplant makes a sublime difference, is Francis Lam's Let My Eggplant Go Free. This dish looks grey and gloopy, completely offputting, but tastes wonderful. The roasted tomatoes and torn basil gives it a great whooping umami kick of flavour. I often eat it without the pasta, just as a little pick-me-up between lunch and supper.

That sounds sort of like a variation on Imam Bayildi (which is basically eggplant stewed with a little tomato and a LOT of olive oil). Good times!

Eggplant/aubergine sucks up olive oil like a thirsty sponge. I brush a little olive oil onto slices before grilled or oven-roasting rather than letting the eggplant absorb all the oil. All the same, indulgent Imam Bayildi is a great dish.

I am not a big fan of eggplant for eating purposes, though I might give some of these ideas another try. But I did really enjoy growing them when I lived in Texas. I had great production, and no trouble whatever giving them away at work to people who liked them. I got beautiful big shiny black ones, as good as any you'd find at a supermarket, and a lot fresher.

Alas, where I live now, in Alaska, it's impossible to grow them; growing season is way too short, and summers usually too cool.

caw

Made Corned Beef and Cabbage today!

(I know, what can I say? - I'm predictable, if nothing else - LOL)