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Posted: Aug/26/2008 6:55 PM PST
Is there any good recipes for eggplant that don't use it as a filler or replacement for meat. I grew it and it doesn't have any flavor of its own. |
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Posted: Aug/26/2008 9:13 PM PST
I never think of eggplant as a replacement for meat! It has a delicious flavor and is great with meat or all on its own. It's probably my favorite overall vegetable! I like it in stir fries, pastas, pureed in dips, on sandwiches, fried crunchy with a dip, rolled around things, you name it. LOL just not raw. My favorite simple way to make eggplant as an appetizer: Slice one large eggplant in 1/2 inch slices. Brush heavily on both sides with good olive oil. Place on an oiled baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until very soft and beginning to brown. In the meantime, slice a large onion and sautee it in a couple tablespoons olive oil until it is soft but not brown. Add a tablespoon of sugar, two tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and heat a few minutes more. The onion should be pretty juicy. If not add a little more balsamic vinegar. Arrange the eggplant slices on a plate and top with the onions and their juices. Sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs (I like parsley oregano and basil) and some diced fresh tomato for color. Set aside at room temperature for a couple hours before serving. Don't put in the fridge! This is a good one to serve as a salad course with bread, or it goes great as a side dish next to fish or grilled meat. Leftovers make great sandwiches. |
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Posted: Aug/27/2008 6:41 AM PST
My favorite is just like above, except I puree 1 garlic clove in the olive oil before brushing the eggplant slices with it. Grill for just about one minute on each side over high heat and they are ready to go. Your looking for soft, but not mushy. Typically served as a side dish. You could also deep fry slices in your favorite batter and dip them in marinara sauce for a tasty appetizer. Use eggplant in the same manner you would zuchinni or squash. |
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Posted: Aug/27/2008 7:44 AM PST
Yepper Damethod! Garlic + Eggplant = Yummy! I left a braised garlic recipe under the pickled garlic thread. That stuff would be great added to the eggplant recipe. Or any recipe for that matter LOL. For you folks who like Hummus and middle eastern dips, here's a great recipe to use up any eggplants you have languishing around past their best. We had a whole CASE (about 15 large eggplants) at work that I turned into dip last week and everyone loved it. This is a very simple recipe and I always add ingredients to taste. I'll give rough amounts but taste as you go and adjust to your own liking. Lebanese Eggplant Dip: 2 large eggplant 2 cloves fresh garlic finely minced 1/4 c finely diced red onion juice and zest of one lemon 1/4 c flavorful extra virgin olive oil 1t salt cracked black pepper 1/4 c finely chopped parsley Put two large eggplants on your grill over high flame or in a 400 degree oven, or under the broiler on high. Some people wrap them in foil but I never do, I like the blackened flavor. Cook them for about an hour, turning occassionally, until they blacken, burn, and collapse. The skins should be crisp burnt and the inside completely soft and mushy. Let it cool enough to handle, remove the blackened skin (if a few tiny flakes stay in there it's OK) and chop the pulp seeds and all with a knife until it's a nice texture for dipping. No need for a food processor, it's already mushy. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix. Let sit a couple hours before serving, and don't serve ice cold out of the fridge. You can change anything to taste. I like quite a lot of salt and lemon in mine. You can use roasted garlic if you don't like the burn of raw. I like hot red pepper flakes and whole cumin seeds in there sometimes too, or a sprinkle of cilantro. To serve you can dip it right out of the tupperware, or spread it on a pretty plate and top with olive oil, feta cheese crumbles, and chopped herbs. It's good on pita bread or toasted pita chips. |
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Posted: Sep/15/2008 6:55 PM PST
Yup, Yup yup! To all these recipes.. The Lebanese dip is a real winner. It's proper name is BABA GHANOUSH. The only difference in my recipe is: -1/4 cup tahini(sesame seed paste in case you don't know) and -2 tablespoons sesame seeds. As for dipping: Stack a few Pita breads. With a sharp knife cut them in pie wedges. Put a single layer of Pita wedges on a cookie sheet in 325 degree oven till crisp. Use to scoop dip. OR: Make a tray of raw vegetables, baby carrots, broccoli flowerettes, cauliflower bits to use with the dip. Another version for slices... you can bread and fry 1/2 inch thick slices. Best to bleed them of excess liquid and bitterness first, by salting heavily and placing between layers of paper towels. You won't believe the amount of liquid that comes out! Then brush off the salt, rinse quickly with running water. dry with more paper towels. Then do the usual three bowls: I for flour, 1 for a beaten egg, the third for crumbs.A tip here: To keep your fingers from getting all gummy, use one hand for dry only, the other for the wet (egg). Then fry them to golden on each side. Remove excess oil on paper towels. Eat immediately while still crisp with a thin thread of balsamic vinegar drizzled on. YUM! ++++++++++ I have another recipe to add to the collection. This one is a lot of work but worth the trouble. Like most Eggplant dishes it is middle eastern. I promise you this dish will perfume the entire house and bring salivating neighbours to your door! The word TAJINE refers to both the earthenware pot in which the dish is cooked and the stews that are cooked in the pot. The first time I made this, I was a little frightened by the wild and unlikely variety of ingredients.. I am very very glad I had the courage to carry it through.. it is really fabulous. I tried including a photo of a typical earthenware TAJINE, but it wouldn't load. You can cook this in any stew pot though. Enjoy! Gimpy2 P.S. OOPS! it did load, TWICE. Sorry. LAMB, EGGPLANT & PRUNE TAJINE -2 medium eggplant ( slice 1” thick, cover with coarse salt, put between paper towel layers.) -¼ cup olive oil 2 pounds cubed lamb -½ tsp. ground cinnamon -2 tsp. ground cumin -½ tsp. ground ginger -1 tsp. ground turmeric -2 crushed cloves garlic -1 finely chopped Spanish onion -2 ¾ cups water -2 large strips lemon rind -1 cinnamon stick -¾ cups quartered seedless prunes -1 TBS. honey -½ cup blanched whole toasted almonds -2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds -2 TBS. fresh chopped coriander leaves -2 cups couscous -4 cups boiling water -handful chopped parsley -1 TBS. olive oil & butter, ½ & ½ In an dry pot, toast almonds until golden. Remove to a small dish. Toast sesame seeds in same pot. Remove to a small dish. Both almonds & sesame seeds burn really fast, so don't turn your back on them when they are on the fire and keep shaking the pot all the while. Heat oil in a casserole dish. Fry lamb and ground spices until lamb is brown all over. Remove lamb from pot, set aside. In the same oil, fry onions then garlic until soft. Garlic burns easily and is irricoverably bitter, so fry it only in the last few minutes. Stir in water, rind & cinnamon stick. Return lamb to pot, cover, simmer about 1 hour, until lamb is fork tender. Rinse salt off eggplant. Pat the eggplant dry, quarter each slice, then leave in paper towel till ready to use. Stir prunes, almonds, honey, coriander and eggplant into the casserole, cover and cook 30 minutes more, until eggplant is fork tender. Discard cinnamon stick and orange rind. Put couscous into a glass bowl, pour boiling water over, stir once, cover and with a plate & let stand 10 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork, whisk in a tablespoon olive oil or butter, sprinkle with parsley. Personally, I like to stir in a heaping tablespoon of fresh snipped coriander leaves, but that's just me, not everyone like that herb. Serve Tajine sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds & a platter of parsleyed coucous. ++++++++ I found one more from my monthly newsletter from EPICURIOUS. I haven't tried this one yet, but it sounded so good decided to cut 'n paste the recipe. I intend to try it soon. I am including comments from the Epicurious editor and quite a few from members of the general public that tried the recipe. One critic is Thai.. They like stuff really hot, so beware of following suit with the amount of curry. CASSEROLES SPICY EGGPLANT AND GREEN BEAN CURRY This fresh and sophisticated dish would be a delicious vegetarian entrée for two — just add rice. Look for curry paste and coconut milk in the Asian foods section of the supermarket. -5 TBS.vegetable oil, divided -4 garlic cloves, chopped -1 TBS. grated peeled ginger -8 oz. green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces -1 (14- 16oz) eggplant, peeled, cut into 2 x 1/2 x 1/2-inch sticks -1 TBS. grated lime peel -1 tsp. Thai green curry paste -1 can coconut milk -3 scallions, chopped - ¼ c. chopped fresh cilantro -2 TBS chopped fresh mint Heat 4 tablespoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and ginger; stir 30 seconds. Add eggplant and green beans. Cook until almost tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Cover and cook until completely tender, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer vegetables to a bowl. Add 1 tablespoon oil, lime peel, and curry paste to same skillet; stir 15 seconds. Add coconut milk; bring to boil, whisking until smooth. Return vegetables to skillet; toss until sauce thickens enough to coat vegetables, about 3 minutes. Season with salt. Mix in onions, cilantro, and mint. (Cilantro is another name for Coriander leaves) I've made this twice now, once with frozen green beans and once with fresh, and we thought it was "authentic" tasting & delicious both times. I used Asian eggplant and mint from my garden. by A Cook from Mobile, AL on 08/10/08 It was not nearly as spicy or Thai as I thought it should be, but after adding fish sauce and lime juice it tasted great. by kccooker from Kansas City, MO on 08/12/07 Use about 1-2 Tbsp of curry paste with 1-2 Tbsp of oil cook on low to medium heat until oil turned green color and you can smell fragrance coming out probably will take couple mins,if you like to add cut up meat eg pork or chicken or beef ,add it now to the curry paste,add couple Tbsp of coconut milk and cook until meat done then add the rest of coconut milk (use the whole can) and heat until boiling then add cut up vegetables then cook until done.If you like seafood need to add to the boiling curry soup at the end so it won't be overcooked.Add some basil leaves at the end.Greencurry usually taste slightly sweet therefore add a pinch of sugar by patcharin from Baltimore,MD on 03/14/07 Attachments:   |
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