Eggplants are ancient vegetables that were cultivated by humans thousands of years ago. They are cousins of the potatoes. They have an extremely high content of vitamins A, K, and C. They also contain large amounts of iron, sulfur, chlorine, tannins and cellulose. Their specific bitter taste is due to the substance solanine, which in large quantities is poisonous.
There are several ways to remove the bitter taste from an eggplant.
Usually cooks cut them into slices or cubes, season them generously with salt and leave them for 30-40 minutes, preferably 1-2 hours, until the excess liquids drain from them, including the bitter taste. This can also be done by soaking the eggplants in salted water.
It is important then to rinse the vegetables carefully and dry them up well with kitchen paper, because this way it will not absorb extra fat in the process of cooking.
Another way to get rid of the bitter taste of eggplants is to freeze them in the freezer for a few hours. When they defrost at room temperature, they will again be released from excess fluid and the solanine they contain. The rule of washing and drying also applies here.
Once you know how to remove the bitterness of eggplant, we recommend that you prepare some of these great eggplant recipes:
- stuffed eggplant;
- eggplant moussaka;
- imam bayildi;
