Do I need to soak eggplant before cooking, how and how much to do it? How to cook eggplant so that it does not taste bitter? Secrets of experienced chefs.

Eggplant, beloved by many, is not only tasty, but also extremely healthy. It contains about 40 minerals and vitamins that prolong your youth and promote longevity. Dishes prepared from this dark blue vegetable have a beneficial effect on the functioning of many organs. If you often eat baked eggplants, then you will prevent the development of many diseases of the digestive system and stool disorders. Due to the beautiful rich color, in some regions of Russia and Ukraine this vegetable is called "blue" or "blue". What they don’t do from it in cooking: stew, bake in the oven and on the grill, fry, preserve, marinate and make caviar out of it. In any form, it is tasty and healthy, provided there is no bitterness. Before many housewives, the question arose more than once about how to remove bitterness from eggplant.

Resourceful housewives puzzled for a long time, thinking about what to do to eliminate the "bitterness" from their favorite vegetable. Even the most delicious recipe can be spoiled if you feel a bitter taste on your tongue. Most of the methods to get rid of bitterness require the use of salt. We offer you several useful and effective ways to restore the fresh and delicate taste of eggplant.

Rubbing fruit with salt

Eggplants should be thoroughly washed with cold water, removing dirt and cutting off the tails. After that, cut the purple fruit into two halves (you need to cut along, not across). Rub the halves generously with salt and leave them for 10-15 minutes, after which the salt must be washed off under cold water. This method is good because the vegetable does not need to be cut into small pieces, which may not be suitable for cooking many dishes. After washing off the salt with cold running water, the bitterness will disappear.

Incisions will help improve the result of the procedure.

Soaking under pressure

This method also does not do without table salt. This time, the eggplant needs to be washed, cut off the tails and cut into rings or cubes of a size that is suitable for preparing the intended dish. The solution is prepared as follows: 1 tablespoon of coarse salt per 1 liter of cold water. It takes about half an hour to soak the vegetable pieces before cooking, but it is important to use a press.

To make a press, you need to take a plate or a round board smaller than the pan or bowl in which the eggplant is soaked. Place a bottle of water on top of a plate or bowl. After 30 minutes, soaked in saline and squeezed pieces of eggplant should be thoroughly rinsed with cold water. Do not think that after such a procedure, the dish can not be salted: the salt will go away along with unwanted bitterness after washing. This method will not only help kill bitterness, but also make dishes prepared from it less harmful. After such a soaking, eggplant rings do not absorb fat so much, and the flesh becomes more tender in taste.

Soaking without a press

Peeled eggplant should be cut into cubes or rings and placed in cold water. Water must be pre-salted. This method is similar to the previous one, but you do not need to do a press. It is enough just to leave the pieces of "blue" in a bowl for 45 minutes. There is no guarantee that you will be able to get rid of bitterness. It is better to repeat this procedure twice in order to surely save the future dish.

peeling

It is believed that it is in the bright dense skin that all the bitterness is contained. Therefore, peeling the skin is considered the easiest way to get rid of bitterness. This method is effective, but in many dishes this peel is necessary. The flesh of the vegetable itself is too tender, and when stewing or frying, it will not hold the desired shape.

In order not to worry about the taste of the fruit you have chosen, pay attention to its appearance. It should be poured, dense and shiny. If you see that the eggplant is old and lethargic, with spots, then it is better to refrain from buying such a fruit. None of the above methods will relieve it of bitterness and will not add tenderness to the taste.

Summer is not only a period of holidays, but also a generous vegetable, fruit and berry season. For example, in the summer, you can constantly treat yourself to snacks, as well as eggplant salads. However, this vegetable can taste bitter, and if nothing is done, the dish will turn out tasteless.

How to get rid of bitterness in eggplant?

Each housewife, most likely, has her own, time-tested secret of removing bitterness from eggplant. Here you can see the most popular of them. Perhaps among these tips there will be yours, or maybe you will find new, interesting information for yourself, something that you yourself could not have thought of.

Removing bitterness from eggplant with salt

Selected eggplants should be washed well, ponytails should be removed. The cutting method is up to you. Already chopped blue ones are carefully rubbed with coarse salt and placed in a deep bowl. Then for 20 minutes, and if the vegetables are needed whole, then plus for another 60 minutes, the eggplants should be left alone.

Salt crystals will dissolve - and liquid will appear on the surface of the vegetable pieces. After the specified time, the little blue ones need to be washed under the tap with cold water, and after that you can cook the intended dish from them.

Getting rid of bitterness by soaking

In order to remove the bitterness from eggplants, you can simply hold them filled with water. To this end, the vegetables should be washed, cut in the way you need, placed in a bowl and add water and salt to them at the rate of 1 liter of water 1 tbsp. l. salt. A bowl of eggplant is closed with a lid, it is pressed down on top with a load, for example, a three-liter jar filled with water.

Soak the eggplant for about 30 minutes. Then they are washed with cold water and added to the dish. Vegetables prepared in this way almost do not absorb oil during frying, which means they will turn out to be more tender and appetizing.

Peeling

Another way to help remove bitterness from eggplant.

To be frank, usually the little blue ones don't taste so bitter. However, if, in your opinion, the eggplants purchased at the store are not sweet enough, you can remove the peel from the vegetables, if the cooking technology of this dish allows. After such actions, be completely sure that the bitterness of the eggplant will go away completely, and the dish will taste good.

In the end, I would like to note that, as a rule, old vegetables are bitter. Since young eggplants are not bitter, they usually do not need any preliminary preparation. What is the difference between young blue and old vegetables? It is easy to determine: in young eggplants, the skin is smooth, with a shine, there are no dark spots on it, there are no rotten places. These little blue ones are medium in size, quite heavy. The cut of a young vegetable is light, without dark seeds. If at least one of these parameters is violated, obviously, you are already elderly specimens, which are better to refuse.

Eggplants are readily used in cooking in many countries. From this tasty and healthy vegetable, a valuable source of protein, a wide variety of dishes, snacks and preservation for the winter are made. In the process of preparing many dishes, blue ones undergo a special treatment that helps them get rid of bitterness. So, what should be done so that the eggplant does not taste bitter?

This useful information will be useful to many cooks, especially beginners who want to properly cook this wonderful vegetable.

Causes of a bitter taste

Why are eggplants bitter? Blue ones contain a lot of solanine. This is a poisonous substance that gives the fruit a bitter taste. The longer the blue ones ripen, the more bitter and poisonous they will taste.

To date, many hybrid varieties have been bred, the fruits of which do not contain bitterness, for example, "White Night", "Taste of Mushrooms" or "Green".

Options for removing bitterness

There are several ways to get rid of bitterness in eggplant.

soaking

To remove bitterness, the fruits are soaked in salt water. First, the vegetables are cut into slices, cubes or cubes, depending on the recipe, then dipped in a salt solution. Give 1 tablespoon of salt per liter of water. Then the blue ones are thrown into a sieve or colander so that the remaining juice drains.

How long to soak eggplant in salt water? It all depends on the state of the hearths. The older the vegetable, the more time it is soaked. Half an hour is enough for young eggplants, but at least an hour for old fruits. During this time, the vegetables will release the juice and completely get rid of the bitterness.

Sprinkling with salt

Eggplants can be left unsoaked. Many hostesses use a different way of “processing” blue ones, sprinkling eggplant slices with salt. After 30 minutes, the blue ones are washed under cold water, thrown into a colander and allowed to drain the remaining water.

Freeze

There is another way to remove bitterness from eggplant - by freezing. First, the blue ones are peeled, then cut into slices or cubes, put in a plastic bag and sent to the freezer for four hours. Then the eggplant slices are defrosted and the resulting juice is squeezed out. True, after such processing, the blue ones quickly lose their shape and turn into a puree-like mass during the heat treatment process.
The little blue ones “give away” bitterness well if they are dipped in milk for half an hour and put under oppression. After this time, the fruits should be slightly squeezed.

You can do it differently, bypassing the manipulation of saline or freezing, by removing the seeds in the fruit. The fruits are cut into two longitudinal parts and cleaned of seeds with a teaspoon.

Eggplants in the common people are called blue. Based on the vegetable, stews, caviar, side dishes, salads, and snacks are prepared. Often, eggplants are fried in batter, after which they are consumed with bread and mayonnaise. Experienced housewives have repeatedly encountered a problem, which is the bitter taste of the fruit. As a rule, this feature is characteristic of the seeds and peel of the vegetable. To prepare a delicious snack, the first step is to get rid of bitterness. Consider possible ways to solve the problem.

How to choose the right eggplant

This stage is rightfully considered the most responsible, since the taste of the finished dish depends on the correct choice of eggplant. The presence of bitterness characterizes the general appearance of blue, density, size, age of the vegetable.
As mentioned earlier, bitterness is not felt from the pulp, but from the peel and seeds, which contain solanine. The named component causes poisoning if consumed in large quantities.
It is important to mention that eggplants, relatively recently harvested from the garden, do not have a bitter taste. The feature appears only after a certain period of time.
If you buy eggplant, give preference to a young vegetable. If possible, purchase fruits on the market from trusted suppliers.
Inspect the eggplant tail, it should be elastic. Press down on the stalk, make sure it's not rotten. Check the foliage for dried out specimens. Do not buy eggplants whose leaves are not green and dry.
Run your fingers over the surface of the blue ones, the peel should be smooth (not slippery!) Without roughness and bumps. Good eggplants have a slightly creaky surface.
Refuse to buy large vegetables, these are old fruits that do not carry any benefit to the body. Blue ones of this kind contain a lot of solanine.
If possible, estimate the thickness of the peel. The thinner the surface, the healthier the fruit. Vegetables with soft skins are high in antioxidants.

Not all blue ones have a bitter taste. However, if you purchased old fruits, consider effective ways to solve the problem.

Method number 1. Salt soak

This option is rightfully considered the most popular. It is suitable for people who wish to remove bitterness from whole fruits. This completely eliminates the need for cutting vegetables into slices.
To properly carry out the procedure, prepare a wide pelvis in advance and organize oppression. Such a move will not allow the blue ones to float to the surface of the brine.
To soak, pour filtered water into the container, it is advisable to pre-cool the liquid. For 1 liter add 35 gr. coarse edible salt, do not use sea salt.
Dip the whole eggplant in the liquid. To shorten the duration of the procedure, chop the fruit into 4-6 equal parts (optional).
The blue ones don't have enough weight to sink into the salty liquid. Therefore, you need to build oppression. Cover the fruits with a flat dish, place a two- or five-liter bottle on top.
The duration of exposure of chopped vegetables is 30-45 minutes, the period depends on the number of eggplants. If you are soaking whole fruits, increase the time to 1.5-2 hours.
After the allotted time, rinse the eggplants under the tap, leave on a sieve to drain excess liquid. Squeeze the slices a little, start cooking.

Method number 2. Sprinkling with salt

You can remove the bitterness from the blue ones by the “dry” method, sprinkling the fruits with salt. As a bulk composition, iodized, sea, table or crushed (extra) salt is suitable.
To properly carry out the procedure, wash and dry the eggplant. Remove the stalks and leaves, chop the vegetables in a convenient way (slices, cubes, straws, etc.).
The little blue ones are optional, but desirable. This will shorten the exposure time. Prepare the salt, make sure that there are no spices in it.
Take a deep dish, send the blue ones inside, sprinkle them with salt and mix with your hands so that the composition is absorbed faster. Shift salt with eggplant in layers.
The duration of dry "soaking" is 20-25 minutes. Drops of liquid on the surface of the fruit will tell you about the end of the procedure.
When the allotted time expires, discard the vegetables in a colander, rinse with running water. Blot with napkins or towels, start cooking.

other methods

Boiling. If the shape of the vegetable does not matter to you, you can pre-boil the eggplant. Wash them, chop them into rings or medium-sized cubes. Send in boiling salted water, simmer over high heat for about 2-3 minutes. After the time has passed, put the vegetables on a sieve, leave to drain the liquid. Start cooking your main course.
Freezing. Freezing fruits is considered an excellent option for removing a bitter taste. In order to carry out the manipulations, rinse the vegetables and dry them thoroughly. Chop the blue ones into cubes, put them in a plastic container, do not close the lid. Leave in the freezer for 4-5 hours, then remove and squeeze out excess liquid.
Removing the peel and seeds. If you need skinless and seedless vegetables for a particular dish, use this method. Peel the eggplants, chop them into slices, leave for 10 minutes in ice water. After that, squeeze out the liquid, dry with a towel.

To save yourself from unnecessary manipulations, choose eggplants correctly. Give preference to young fruits with a smooth skin. Otherwise, remove bitterness by soaking or salting. Freeze or boil blue ones, peel, remove seeds.

Video: how to remove bitterness from eggplant

Eggplant is grown by almost every summer resident due to the fact that the vegetable has a lot of useful properties and a large supply of nutrients. Not everyone likes it when the eggplant is even slightly bitter. Just like not everyone knows that it can be caused by the peculiarities of growing and caring for the crop, improper harvesting. What to do to get rid of bitterness is described in the article.

Why can a vegetable have a bitter taste? Having learned about all the reasons, it will be possible to neutralize the disadvantage and grow the ideal crop, as well as make harvesting for the future.

harvesting eggplant

Late cleaning

Like any crop, eggplant must be harvested on time. Otherwise, they will change their appearance, and also become rough, bitter.

Fruits should be removed approximately 1.5 months after the appearance of the ovary. During this period, the seeds have a light color, the pulp is tender, without bitterness.

changeable weather

Climatic conditions also significantly affect the taste of eggplant. Therefore, those plants that were grown in open ground, due to these features, can grow bitter. It is because of this that for regions with frequently changing weather conditions, it is recommended to grow eggplant in a greenhouse.

Insufficient soil moisture is also one of the root causes of bitterness in eggplant. In hot and sunny weather, it is necessary to ensure that the soil is constantly moistened and that the top layer does not dry out. Watering should be carried out in the first half of the day, the sequence - every other day.

Proper abundant watering of eggplant

The choice of variety is the most important and responsible business. It will depend on him in the first place whether it will be possible, in principle, to get rid of the bitter taste in the finished fruits. The fact is that some varieties initially have this drawback, and no matter how hard you try in the future, you won’t be able to remove it.

When choosing a variety for growing a crop, it is better to opt for a well-known, time-tested one.

The best traditional varieties are:

Diamond;
Purple miracle;
Nutcracker;
Czech early.

Fans of more exotic fruits can be advised:

Thai white;
Pelican;
Rosita.

Seedlings are best grown on their own. The market may not provide you with the variety that you want to purchase. Often summer residents and gardeners become victims of deception. Subsequently, all your efforts and labors will be reduced to zero and it will not be possible to achieve the desired result for reasons beyond your control.

Eggplant Nutcracker Czech Early Purple Miracle Thai White Variety Pelican Eggplant Diamond

If the fruits still turned out with bitterness, do not be too upset. You should try to get rid of the disadvantage in known ways. Fortunately, humanity already has experience in this matter, and over the years a lot of ways have been invented on how to cook a vegetable in order to easily remove bitterness from it.

A simple and affordable way to harvest eggplant without bitterness is freezing. The collected and washed fruits should be cut into small slices, put in a freezer bag and sent to the freezer. If you are not going to store the workpiece, then you can get it after 4 hours. Let it thaw and squeeze out the water. The bitterness will go away with the water.

Eggplant prepared in this way will only be suitable for mashing. It will not be possible to keep them whole during the cooking process.

frozen eggplant