Eggplant in gourmet quality comes to the table with its peel on. Water plays an important role in preparation. The pulp is drained with s alt before being prepared in the oven, in the pan or on the grill. This is how you conjure up delicious eggplants without a bitter aftertaste.
Should you water eggplant before cooking?
It is not absolutely necessary to water eggplants before cooking. Instead, it is recommended to s alt the eggplant and let it sit for 30 minutes to remove excess water and bitter substances. Then you should pat the eggplant pieces dry.
Prepare and cut eggplant
You should avoid taking a hearty bite into a raw egg fruit. Like potatoes and other fruits of the nightshade family, eggplants are not suitable for raw consumption. The exotic fruit is too good to peel because valuable vitamins and minerals are lost. How to properly prepare an eggplant:
- Clean the whole fruit under running water
- Cut off the inedible head side with the stem and leaf base
- You can choose to cut the opposite end or not
Now cut the eggplant into finger-thick slices. Alternatively, place the fruit vertically on the previously cut surface. Now the fruit can be halved or cut into long slices. If you want bite-sized pieces, you can stick the slices or cut them into cubes.
S alting and draining eggplant - How to do it right
With s alt you can prepare the eggplant perfectly as a culinary delight in the oven, in the pan or on the grill. S alt removes excess water from the pulp. The bitter aftertaste disappears happily and the pulp later absorbs less fat. Follow these steps to do it right:
- Pour the cut eggplant into a colander
- Hanging a sieve in a pot
- S alting with iodized s alt or sea s alt
- Mix everything well
- Let it steep for 30 minutes
- Pour out the collected liquid
- Cover the table with kitchen paper
- Place the pieces of fruit on the kitchen paper
- Dry with a clean cloth
Now the egg fruit is ready for further processing. When baking, deep-frying or grilling, the flesh remains temptingly crisp and does not become soggy and soft.
S alting is unnecessary before cooking
S alting the fruit pieces is not necessary if you cook eggplant in water. This intermediate step in the preparation is also not necessary if you combine the egg fruits with other ingredients, for example as ratatouille or stew. A delicious eggplant casserole with cheese gratin can also safely do without dewatering with s alt.
Tip
It sounds like gardener's Latin and yet it has a lot of meaning. By fertilizing home-grown eggplants with nettle manure, you give the fruits more aroma and taste.
