Eggplant why salt

It does this by drawing out water and collapsing some of the eggplant walls. Without the sponge-like walls of the eggplant, the texture will be vastly improved over the styrofoam-esque texture of raw eggplant. Over the last century, farmers and agricultural engineers have bred eggplants to not be as bitter as their ancestors.

Yes, when your great-grandmother was salting eggplant, it really did have an astringent zing in every bite. Today, the typical eggplant has very little bite. Older, larger eggplant might be more bitter than smaller, younger plants. As the eggplant ages, it can become bitter, so in that case, a bit of salt might help. If you want great texture for eggplant , the most important thing is matching your salting status to your cooking method.

You have two basic methods you can use, salting it dry and soaking it in saltwater. Toss the cubes or slices with the salt, and let them rest for 30 minutes, or until you see moisture beading up on the surface. Then, rinse off the salt under running water for 1 minute, and press the eggplant dry between 2 paper towels.

Alternatively, soak the eggplant in a bowl of saltwater for 30 minutes, then pat them dry with paper towels. For helpful tips, like how to adjust the amount of salt based on the size of the eggplant, scroll down. Did this summary help you? Yes No.

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Rinse off the outside of the eggplant. You can peel the eggplant if you prefer, but you can also leave the skin on. Add salt. You can use regular table salt, kosher salt, or whatever you have on hand. Spread the cubes out in a colander or over a cooling rack, as water will drip off them.

If you're eggplant is larger or smaller, adjust the amount of salt in the same ratio. Let the cubes rest. This process takes time, as the salt is drawing moisture out of the eggplant. You'll need 30 minutes at the minimum, but you can leave them up to an hour and a half. Wes Avila to open a new Mexican restaurant in Hollywood next month. Andy Baraghani puts his bold, stylish spin on Thanksgiving classics.

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