Contrary to the beliefs of many people that eggplant is a vegetable, it is actually one of the most common fruits used in cooking, which comes in different shapes like oblong and round. In addition, eggplant has various colors such as purple, white, and green. For those who have interest in cooking eggplant, they can always try the different methods of serving this fruit and adding it in delicious dishes. Furthermore, it is essential that they have broad knowledge on proper selection and preparation of the fruit before they learn how to cook eggplant.

Factors to Consider When Purchasing Eggplants to Include in Dishes

Before exploring and learning the various ways of how to cook eggplant, it is important to know the different factors to consider when buying this fruit to make sure that it is still fresh when they add it in the dishes that they want to prepare. First, people should have idea on the type of eggplant that goes well with the dishes that they plan to cook. Globe eggplant is the usual type of eggplant that is used in most dishes. Another common type of eggplant is Italian eggplant, which is smaller than a globe eggplant.

Second, fresh eggplants have shiny and smooth skins, as well as their stems are still attached to the fruits. Third, it is advantageous to select fruits that weigh a pound since small eggplants are not tasty while big eggplants are bitter. Finally, when it comes to the storage of the fruit, it is necessary to put the eggplant inside a plastic bag to retain its freshness and place the bag inside the refrigerator.

Proper Preparation of Eggplants

Proper preparation is important to those who want to know how to cook eggplants. To reduce the bitter taste of the fruit, people can rinse and salt it before they cook them or add them in dishes. To salt the fruit, slice it and drizzle the slices with salt. Let it stay for 30 minutes and rinse the eggplant. After learning this, let us proceed to the different ways of how to cook eggplants.

Understanding the Different Ways of How to Cook Eggplants

Learning how to cook eggplant is important to prepare new, healthy, and tasty dishes. For those who have passion for cooking eggplant, they can try the five different ways of preparing this fruit. Grilling and frying are two easy ways to cook eggplant. When grilling eggplants, cut the fruits in several slices and grill the fruits until they are tender. On the other hand, when frying eggplants, slice the fruits and place them in a pan with hot oil. To avoid burning the fruits maintain low heat.

Another way of cooking eggplant is by stir-frying. Cut the fruit into cubes and place in a pan with hot oil. Season the fruit with salt and pepper to taste. People can also add ground pork to produce Chinese taste. Meanwhile, for dishes that need fruits that have smoky savor, charbroiled roasting is the best way to use. Finally, oven roasting is a good alternative for charbroiled roasting. Rinse and salt the fruit. Pierce the fruit before placing it inside an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake eggplant until it is soft. Let it cool down and peel the skin. Serve immediately with condiments.