Eggplant can be a tough vegetable to work with and you need to know a few tricks to prevent it from becoming soggy. That’s when you should start looking at restaurants and the little tips they use to make eggplants taste delicious. Restaurant eggplant dishes usually toe the line between tender and firm, with a meaty flavor that makes them taste perfect under hearty sauces and cheesy toppings. And then there are the eggplant dishes you make at home. Cook an untreated eggplant and you are often left with a mushy, runny mess, that seeps out liquid and sogs up what was supposed to be a crispy eggplant parmesan. So, what’s the deal? Well experts know salt is important for drawing excess water out of eggplant before cooking, but they also know something else: it helps to weigh it down.
You’ll often see eggplant recipes calling for you to salt slices of eggplant, then let them rest before patting the excess moisture off. However, you might find that even after sitting for a half-hour or more there isn’t actually that much water being drawn out. This technique can get a lot more effective with some pressure to help squeeze out the liquid. Just spread your eggplant on some paper towels, put some more on top, then cover it with a sheet pan. Weigh the sheet pan down with a heavier pan or pot — the extra force will help the salt draw out a lot more moisture.
Use pans to weigh down eggplant slices after salting
Salting your eggplant and weighing it down to draw out moisture is primarily about getting the best texture, but it can help with the flavor as well. Despite what you might have heard, this technique is not actually about reducing bitterness. Modern eggplants have had most of that bitter taste bred out of them. So, the old notion that salting eggplants makes them less sharp is no longer relevant. Salted eggplant without excess moisture will brown better on the outside, adding flavor complexity and lending a nice textural contrast with the tender, juicy insides. Less moisture also means the flavor of the eggplant is more concentrated in the flesh. Finally, less soggy eggplants won’t absorb as much excess fat and oil when they cook, keeping them from becoming too greasy. So, while you don’t have to worry about bitterness, salting your eggplants using the pan technique is still well worth it.
Let your eggplant rest under the pans for at least half an hour or up to an hour. From there you can make any of your favorite eggplant recipes, whether you’re baking, sauteing, or frying. Your eggplant dips will be richer in flavor, your moussaka will be more meaty, and your grilled eggplants will be delectably tender. All thanks to the power of salt and gravity.
