Baked Eggplant Fries - Divalicious Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Should I soak my eggplant in milk before frying? ›

Peel the eggplants and cut them into 1/2-inch thick rounds. Place the rounds in a colander and sprinkle them with the salt. Weight them down — I use a plate — and let them sit for at least 1 hour. Rinse them, place in a bowl and cover them with milk (which will draw out the salt) and let sit till you are ready to fry.

A useful tip to prevent sogginess and greasiness is to salt sliced or diced eggplant and let it sit for an hour. This helps to draw out moisture.

Put Them Into the Freezer

Once the fried eggplant is frozen, you can transfer it to a freezer-safe container. It will keep for about three to four months. If you freeze the slices individually first, you should be able to pull out as many slices as you need at a time.

In an ideal world, Chris adds, you should toss the cut eggplant in a bowl of oil to get a chance to cover every side of it. In Sarah Jampel's eggplant and ricotta sandwich, you brush the eggplant slices with oil before cooking them in a nonstick skillet, and then brush the other side before flipping. Smart!

Milk is said to help draw out the bitterness in eggplant. Our recipe doesn't call for milk, but if you're worried that your eggplant will taste bitter, you can soak the slices in milk for 20 to 30 minutes. Drain and pat them dry before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.

Not cooking it in enough fat.

You need to be a little more generous in order for there to be enough oil on the outside of the eggplant to cook properly.

Mushy veggies are also often the result of overcooking. When the interior is loaded with moisture, you have to cook it for much longer to evaporate all of the water and avoid the interior having the unappealing, spongy, raw texture that eggplant and zucchini are notorious for.

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.

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.

Salt your eggplant if it's old and soft and/or if you're frying it and looking for a texture so accommodating it will bend over backwards for you—or, if you're doing absolutely everything in your will to make sure it doesn't taste bitter.

How to prepare eggplant before baking? ›

Cut off the top and bottom ends, and if you like, peel the skin. Then cut the flesh into ½- to 1-inch slices. You can halve small eggplants lengthwise instead of slicing. Generously brush the slices on all sides with olive oil, melted butter, or cooking oil (or use an oil-based marinade).

How to Freeze Eggplant. To get the best results, you'll want to fire up the oven, grill, or stovetop before freezing eggplant. Because of its high water content, eggplant doesn't freeze well raw. It benefits from being cooked (even just partially) first.

Eggplant is a high-fiber, low-calorie food that is rich in nutrients and comes with many potential health benefits. From reducing the risk of heart disease to helping with blood sugar control and weight loss, eggplants are a simple and delicious addition to any healthy diet.

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.

Submerge the pieces in the salted water. Use an upside-down plate or pot lid to weigh down the eggplant so it is fully submerged in the water. Let the eggplant sit in the brine for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour. Drain the eggplant and pat it dry with a clean kitchen towel or layers of paper towels.

Salting: One common method is salting the eggplant slices or cubes before cooking. This process helps draw out the bitter compounds and excess moisture. Here's how to do it:Slice or cube the eggplant as desired. Sprinkle salt over the eggplant pieces and let them sit for about 30 minutes.

Next, soak the eggplant in ice-cold water: The chill shocks the surface of the vegetable and fills tiny air pockets between the cells, preventing the oil from entering them.