Storing Eggplant
 

I have one Pingtung fruit ready to pick and another on the way. I also have three small Fairytale eggplants almost ready to pick, but it is not really enough yet for a family meal.

How can I store picked eggplants?

How long will they store?

Dean

I don't think fresh eggplant would store all that long. You can dry them and of course make any number of pickles from them. Just google eggplant pickle. No shortage of recipes. I've never tried freezing them.

i have found in a plastic bag in the fridge they start to soften after 48 hours. seems to me they need to be used with a day of picking.

tom

What I do in the summer is ~ take what ever harvest is ready and slap on the grill. Usually a mixture of eggplant, peppers, onion and squash is delish.

Eggplant does lose moisture FAST. The long thin varieties faster than the plump varieties. Commercially many of the western growers wrap each eggplant in waxed paper to slow down the moisture loss.

A plastic bag in the fridge will help but they will still get softer in about 3 days or so. They aren't BAD, just softer or spongy.

The reason many cookbooks say to salt and rinse eggplant to "get rid of the bitterness" is because the eggplant from the grocery stores will be at least 10 days from picking (if not older) due to shipping and warehousing. It gets somewhat bitter from the moisture loss.

Most varieties (not all) will not be bitter if used fresh, so you can skip that salting and rinse step for fresh eggplant.

Also there is no such thing as "ripe" with eggplant. You can use it at any size that fits your recipe. I have customers that want it at golf ball size for 1 recipe and at huge size for another recipe. All from the same plant just different recipies.

Another falicy is the article that makes the rounds every couple of years by sone uninformed garden or cooking writers -- the "male vs female" eggplant. There is no such thing. By definition only a flower can be male or female not the fruit.

Just some of my knowledge from over 20 years of growing eggplant for Arabic customers ( the fussiest about eggplant).

I love eggplant and this is what I do when the harvest comes on strong. Slice them and grill them or bbq them, then make a batch of dressing with best red-wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, touch of sliced garlic and garden herbs. Arrange eggplant on dish and soak in dressing. Good for two weeks at least. But they won't last that long. Awesome!

I grew 4 Ping Tung aubergine plants last year and they produce more then enough fruit we can eat :).
I froze the extra harvest by pre-steamed/pre-grilled first,let cooled, bag them and ready in to the freezer.