How to remove the bitterness from eggplant before cooking

Eggplants in common people are called blue ones. On the basis of the vegetable cook stews, caviar, side dishes, salads, snacks. Often eggplant is fried in batter, and then consumed with bread and mayonnaise. Experienced housewives have repeatedly faced with the 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 tasty snack, the first thing you need to get rid of the bitterness. Consider possible solutions to the problem.

How to choose eggplant correctly

1. This stage is considered to be the most responsible, because the taste of the finished dish depends on the right choice of eggplants. The presence of bitterness characterizes the general appearance of blue ones, the density, size, age of the vegetable.
2. As mentioned earlier, the bitterness is felt not from the pulp, but from the peel and seeds, which contain solanine.The named component causes poisoning if consumed in large quantities.
3. It is important to mention that eggplants, relatively recently collected from the garden bed, do not have a bitter taste. The feature is manifested only after a certain period.
4. If you buy eggplants, give preference to young vegetables. If possible, purchase the fruits from proven suppliers.
5. Inspect the tail of the eggplant, it should be elastic. Click on the stem, make sure it is not rotten. Assess the foliage for the absence of dried copies. Do not buy eggplants, in which the leaves are not green and dry.
6. Swipe your fingers over the blue, the skin should be smooth (not slippery!) Without roughness and irregularities. In good eggplant, the surface creaks slightly.
7. Refuse to buy vegetables of large size, these are old fruits that do not carry any benefits to the body. In the blue of this kind contains a lot of solanine.
8. If possible, evaluate the thickness of the peel. The thinner the surface, the healthier the fruit. Soft-shelled vegetables contain many antioxidants.

How to remove the bitterness from the eggplant

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

Method number 1. Soaking in saline

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

Method number 2. Salt powder

1. Remove the bitterness from the blue can be "dry" method, sprinkling the fruit with salt. As a bulk composition suitable iodized, sea, cooking or crushed (extra) salt.
2. To properly carry out the procedure, wash and dry the eggplants. Remove the stems and leaves, chop vegetables in a convenient way (slices, cubes, straw, etc.).
3. Blue shredded optional, but desirable. Thus, you shorten the duration of exposure. Prepare the salt, make sure that there are no spices in it.
4. Take a deep dish, send in the blue ones, sprinkle them with salt and mix with your hands so that the composition is absorbed faster. Transfer the eggplant salt in layers.
5. The duration of the dry "soaking" is 20-25 minutes. About the end of the procedure you will be told drops of liquid on the surface of the fruit.
6. When the allotted time expires, fold the vegetables into a colander, rinse with running water.Blot with napkins or towels, start cooking.

other methods

1. Boiling. If the shape of the vegetable is of no importance to you, you can boil eggplants beforehand. Wash them, chop them into rings or cubes of medium size. Send in boiling salted water, simmer on high heat for about 2-3 minutes. After the time, fold the vegetables in a strainer, leave to drain the liquid. Start cooking the main dish.
2. Freezing. An excellent option to remove the bitter taste is the freezing of fruits. To manipulate, rinse the vegetables and dry them thoroughly. Chop the blue cubes into cubes, fold them into a plastic container, do not cover with a lid. Leave in the freezer for 4-5 hours, then remove and squeeze out excess liquid.
3. Peel and seed removal. If for a particular dish you need vegetables without skin and seeds, use this method. Peel the eggplants, chop them into slices, leave in ice cold water for 10 minutes. After this, squeeze the liquid, dry with a towel.

To save yourself from unnecessary manipulations, choose the eggplant correctly. Give preference to young fruits with a smooth skin. In other cases, remove the bitterness by soaking or salt. Freeze or boil the blue ones, remove the skin, remove the seeds.

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