Charred Eggplant With Burrata and Fried Capers Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Do you need to soak eggplant before frying? ›

Eggplant has a high water content, so it's crucial to draw out some of that moisture before you fry it. If you skip the salting, you're setting yourself up for sad, soggy eggplant. Salting the slices and letting them rest on paper towels is any easy step that will help your fried eggplant come out nice and crispy.

One of the secrets to cooking tender-but-never-mushy eggplant is salt. First, Stilo cuts her eggplant into the desired shape (rounds, cubes, planks, etc.), and then sprinkles the eggplant evenly with a generous amount of salt.

If it's an extra-large eggplant, the vegetable could be older and the skin tougher, therefore, it's a smart idea to peel it. But small, young eggplant have thin, tender skins that add great texture to the vegetable when cooked.

Blame the Air Pockets for Eggplant's Sogginess

It's all thanks to the vegetable's cellular structure. Eggplant has soft, spongy flesh loaded with tiny air pockets, which are quick to absorb up hot oil or liquids.

Typically eggplant behaves like a sponge, soaking up heroic amounts of oil when fried. The Terzo Piano chefs use this trick to prevent heavy aubergines: Before frying, soak the strips of eggplant in an ice water bath. They will absorb water and drop in temperature.

The oil still left in the eggplant tissues contributes to the soft, buttery texture that's so appealing. Oil also carries the essence of added herbs and spices, so that eggplant dishes can become rich with the aromas and heady flavors of onions, peppers, anchovies, parsley, garlic, and lemon juice.

Salting: Salting removes excess liquid and some of the bitterness. Today's eggplants are bred for mildness, though, so it's not as important as it used to be (if you are frying eggplant, salting will ensure a creamy texture and rich flavor). This method works for eggplant slices, cubes, or planks.

Depending on variety and size, and how they are cut, eggplants take 15 to 25 minutes to fully cook. Undercook them and you'll be left with a bitter-tasting veggie that has the texture of a cotton ball, says Norton. "Most recipes can accurately predict how much time it will take for eggplants to fully cook.

When looking at the exterior of the eggplant, check the stem and cap. Both should be green and fresh-looking. If they are starting to fade in color, that's an indicator that the vegetable may be spoiling. You'll also want to toss the eggplant if there is any mold on the stem or cap.

It helps draw out moisture from the eggplant. You don't have to salt eggplant though, it depends on the texture your looking for. Salting gives it a more creamy texture when cooked and not salting helps the eggplant hold up and be a little firmer after cooked.

Do you salt eggplant before frying? ›

In The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, Deborah Madison recommends salting slices or cubes for 30 minutes to remove bitterness, 60 or more to achieve better fried eggplant.

The white part of an eggplant, also known as the "flesh," can sometimes turn bitter when cooked due to the presence of a naturally occurring compound called solanine. Solanine is a glycoalkaloid that is found in many members of the nightshade family of plants, which includes eggplants, tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers.

Salt and rest: Slice the eggplant into your desired shape and sprinkle salt over the slices or cubes. Let them sit for about 30 minutes to an hour. The salt will draw out some of the bitter compounds.

To dry eggplant, all you need to do is blot your slices with paper towels (or a clean kitchen cloth). You may also line a cookie sheet with paper towels and arrange your eggplant pieces on top to remove excess water.

Soak it in milk.

Soak eggplant slices or cubes in milk for about 30 minutes before cooking. The milk not only tempers the bitterness, but it actually makes for eggplant that is extra creamy, since the vegetable acts like a sponge and soaks up a good amount of milk in its flesh.

The salted eggplant that had been fried was creamier and more luscious. The unsalted fried eggplant was firmer and slightly fibrous. Despite some claims to the contrary, there was no difference in the amount of oil absorbed between salted and not-salted. Eggplant absorbs a LOT of oil either way.

Salting the eggplant before cooking draws out excess moisture so the eggplant has a stronger flavor and a softer, more tender texture. Less water = more flavor.