How to remove the bitter taste from eggplant? 3 simple tips just for you!

September is the height of eggplant season and you would be wrong to deprive yourself of it. Indeed, the flesh of the smaller ones is melting and sweet. Eggplants should be very firm, with smooth and shiny skin, devoid of spots, of a beautiful and deep purple color. It should be firm to the touch and its stem should not be dried out. To tell if your eggplant is ripe, all you need to do is see a visible imprint when you press the vegetable with your finger. Thin-skinned eggplants are generally devoid of bitterness. However, the larger ones can be quite bitter. How to remove the bitter taste from eggplant? Follow these tips!

What Makes Eggplants Bitter?

The cause of eggplant bitterness comes from the anthocyanin. The latter sometimes accumulates in the fruit and most often in the skin. The possible reasons for its appearance are many and varied: late harvest, sudden temperature changes in the garden or greenhouse or improper watering of plants. Like the potato, the eggplant is a nightshade which contains the alkaloid solanine in its immature fruits. While it is harmless to adults when consumed in small amounts, it is best to avoid giving too much to children.

The presence of this being linked to the presence and activity of chlorophyll, only the maturity of the flesh allows the degradation of solanine in the fruit. We therefore recommend that you consume the ripest eggplant. However, if despite everything the fruits remain bitter, nothing is lost. Indeed, their taste can be corrected by a special culinary treatment. Let’s take a look at some effective ways to do this!

Is it dangerous to eat too many eggplants?

As we mentioned, eggplants belong to the nightshade family and they contain an alkaloid called solanine, which can be toxic if eaten in large amounts. For this purpose, care must be taken not to eat the leaves and tubers of nightshade plants, as they contain large amounts of alkaloids which can be tragic if ingested. Nothing is really proven on this subject, but eggplant would be the cause of many cases of false allergies. It is its high histamine content that would be the cause. Indeed, this substance that the body releases in case of hives would be more concentrated in and around the pips and in the skin.

There would also be cases of cross allergies with other Solanaceae, with coffee and especially latex. The consequences can sometimes be violent. If people consume eggplants in large quantities as part of a diet, for example, those with iron deficiency must limit the consumption. This is because these vegetables contain nasunin, a phytochemical that binds to iron and removes it from cells in a process called iron chelation. This process, while helpful for those with too much iron in their system, is dangerous for people with low iron levels.

How to remove the bitter taste from eggplant?

The best solution to remove the bitter taste of eggplant remains soaking in cold salted water: 1 tablespoon of table salt for 1 liter of water. First, chop the vegetables and dip them in the prepared brine. Then place a plate with weights on it. Leave to rest for 40 minutes. During this time, the pieces will secrete juice, with which the bitterness will come out. Finally, all you have to do is rinse the vegetables from the salt under running water. Finally, pat them dry with a paper towel.

Another more original (and expensive) option is to soak the eggplant in fresh milk. To do this, cut your vegetable into pieces (as you like) and soak them in milk. Cover and let soak for half an hour. Finally, dry the pieces with a paper towel. Last solution just as fast and effective to remove the bitter taste of eggplant: using salt. How to do that? It’s very simple: cut your eggplant into several pieces. Sprinkle them with coarse salt and leave to rest for about 30 minutes. Finally, rinse and dry the eggplants and you are ready to prepare your favorite recipes!