Do you want to prepare a delicious eggplants parmigiana, but don't you know how to clean the eggplants? We’ll explain it to you in this guide; the technique is very simple. First, for those who don’t know, we explain what it means to clean the eggplants. It is a very useful and in some cases fundamental procedure, which is used to eliminate the bitter taste typical of this vegetable.
Rich in vitamins C and fiber, eggplants are very nutritious and help us maintain a healthy and balanced diet. However, eggplants also contain a substance, solanine, which is used to defend themselves against fungi and insects. It is precisely on this substance that the bitter taste of the eggplants depends.
To eliminate it, the most common methods are soaking in water and vinegar and the salt technique. Coarse salt, in particular, by acting by osmosis, eliminates their liquid. In this way, moreover, the eggplants can be cooked faster and even require less oil. So let's see together which is the secret to best clean the eggplants.
A first technique, which is a real grandmother's remedy, consists in leaving the eggplants to soak in water and vinegar. First of all it is essential to wash the eggplants well; pass them under cold running water. With a sharp knife, remove the eggplant base and cap.
You can decide to remove the peel or to leave it. Of course this depends on both your tastes and the recipe you are about to prepare. In any case, cut the eggplant into slices, about 1 cm wide and put them into a bowl full of cold water, with two teaspoons of vinegar. Soak them for about 30 minutes, drain and dry them well.
2.Under salt
You can put the eggplants in salt as a single step, or do it immediately after soaking in water and vinegar, to be sure that you have completely removed the bitter taste. For this operation, it is necessary to cut the eggplants into cubes, or even better into 1 cm thick slices. Again, you can remove the peel if you don't like it.
Take a bowl and a colander. Sprinkle each slice of eggplant with coarse salt and place them one on top of the other in the colander, so that they are rather pressed. Place the colander on the bowl. For best results, add a weight over the eggplants. Let them drain like this for about 2 hours.
After this time, you should find some dark liquid in the bowl. Wash each slice of eggplant thoroughly under cold running water to remove any trace of salt, then squeeze them well to dry them. You can do this with paper towels, or even better with a clean tea towel.
Move on to the preparation of the eggplants according to your recipe, cook them in a pan with salt, oil and oregano, or prepare a baked parmigiana with tomato and stringy mozzarella, or make them grilled or fried in abundant seed oil.
In any case, cut the eggplant into slices, about 1 cm wide and put them into a bowl full of cold water, with two teaspoons of vinegar.Soak them for about 30 minutes, drain and dry them well.
Once the slices of eggplant have taken a long, luxurious, milky bath, they are tenderized and primed for frying. Simply tap off the extra moisture, dust the eggplant slices with sea salt and flour. Then pan-fry them in a large cast iron skillet until golden brown.
However, eggplants also contain a substance, solanine, which is used to defend themselves against fungi and insects. It is precisely on this substance that the bitter taste of the eggplants depends. To eliminate it, the most common methods are soaking in water and vinegar and the salt technique.
Older recipes call for salting eggplant to draw out the bitter juices, but today's eggplants are less bitter (unless very large), so salting is largely unnecessary. It will, however, help the spongy flesh absorb less oil and crisp up like a dream.
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.
Eggplants are known to absorb a lot of fat while cooking. 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. Next, rinse and drain any liquid from the sliced eggplant, then pat dry before cooking.
According to the Kitchn, you can just as easily microwave eggplant to pre-cook it and remove excess water without the added sodium and extra waiting time for it to "sweat" it out.
While the skin of a small young eggplant is edible, the skin becomes bitter on larger or older eggplants and should be peeled. When in doubt, the answer to, "Do you peel eggplant before cooking?" is yes, peel it. Use a vegetable peeler or paring knife to remove the skin.
Cut off and discard the stem of the eggplants, then slice them into 1-inch thick slices, lengthwise. Put the slices in the salt water, and weigh them down with a plate so they are under the brine. Let soak for 30-60 minutes.
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.
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. After a five-minute bath, pat the eggplant completely dry with a paper towel so the hot oil doesn't spatter during frying.
It will, however, help the spongy flesh absorb less oil and crisp up like a dream. To salt, just slice the eggplant into rounds, scatter 1 teaspoon of salt on top, leave for 30 minutes, then pat dry. Brining (soaking in salted water) will do the same job but also make the flesh super creamy.
According to the Kitchn, you can just as easily microwave eggplant to pre-cook it and remove excess water without the added sodium and extra waiting time for it to "sweat" it out.
Introduction: My name is Errol Quitzon, I am a fair, cute, fancy, clean, attractive, sparkling, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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