Natural form

A whole globe eggplant showing its deep purple skin, smooth surface, and green calyx.

Teaches the reader the definitive shape, color, and distinguishing features of a common eggplant at a glance.

Produce

Eggplant

Silky, meaty vegetable for roasting, frying, and dips

Spongy raw and meltingly silky once cooked, eggplant roasts into baba ganoush, fries golden, and layers into parmigiana. Salt it to draw out bitterness. Keep it cool.

Eggplant (aubergine) is a glossy, spongy vegetable that turns from squeaky and bitter when raw to meltingly silky, rich, and almost meaty when properly cooked. That transformation is the whole game: it drinks up oil and flavor, going creamy in baba ganoush, golden in parmigiana, and lush in curries and stews. The keys are cooking it through (undercooked eggplant is unpleasant) and managing its oil-thirst and any bitterness.

Measured in: piece
Storage: Refrigerate
Shelf life: 7 days

Find it in

Produce

Types & varieties

Globe (Italian)

Large, purple-black; the common all-purpose eggplant

Japanese / Chinese

Long, slender, thin-skinned, fewer seeds; tender, less bitter

Graffiti (Sicilian)

Purple-and-white streaked; creamy, mild

Thai / baby

Small green or white; firm, for curries

How to choose

Want eggplant that's firm and heavy for its size with smooth, taut, glossy skin and a fresh green cap. Press gently — it should spring back; if the dent stays, it's overripe. Lighter eggplant for its size has fewer seeds and less bitterness. Avoid wrinkled, dull, or soft fruit.

Salting: when and why

Modern eggplant is bred to be less bitter, so salting isn't always necessary — but it still helps. Salting cut eggplant and letting it drain pulls out excess moisture and any bitterness, and it collapses the spongy air pockets so the flesh absorbs less oil when fried. Rinse and pat dry before cooking. For roasting whole, you can skip it.

Salt and drain to reduce bitterness and oil uptake
Rinse and pat dry after salting
Skip for whole-roasting; useful for frying

Cook it through

Underdone eggplant is spongy, squeaky, and bitter; fully cooked, it's the opposite — creamy and rich. Whatever the method (roasting, frying, grilling, braising, charring over flame for smoky baba ganoush), cook it until completely soft and collapsed. It's thirsty for oil, so brushing or roasting rather than deep-soaking the pan helps keep it from greasiness.

Common uses

Baba ganoushEggplant parmigianaRatatouilleMoussakaCaponataBaingan bharta and curriesGrilled eggplantPasta alla Norma

Tips & pitfalls

Always cook it fully soft — undercooked eggplant is the main reason people dislike it
Salt and drain before frying to cut bitterness and oil absorption
Char it whole over a flame for smoky, silky baba ganoush
Brush with oil and roast rather than frying to control greasiness
Thin Japanese eggplants need no salting and cook fast

Nutrition

25kcal

Energy

105 kJ · per 100 g

Where the calories come from

Protein 13%Carbs 81%Fat 6%

Protein

2% DV

Carbs

5.9g

2% DV

Fat

0.2g

0% DV

Fiber

11% DV

Sugars

3.5g

of which

Sodium

2mg

0% DV

Notable micronutrients

Folate6% DV

Vitamin B65% DV

Potassium5% DV

Niacin (B3)4% DV

Vitamin K3% DV

Thiamin (B1)3% DV

Source · USDA FoodData Central · Eggplant, raw

View on FDC →

In the shops

Matched grocery products

Eggplant
340 g · Mercadona
€0.51
Black Eggplant
Bonpreu
€0.89
Black Eggplant 1 unit
ud · Bonpreu
€0.92
Bonpreu Aubergine Tempura
BONPREU · kg · Bonpreu
€3.19
Organic Aubergine in Tray 500 g
kg · Bonpreu
€3.29
Grated White Eggplant 1 unit
Bonpreu
€1.29

Good to know

Peak season: Late summer through early fall
Flavor: Bitter and spongy raw; rich, silky, savory-meaty when cooked
Origin: India and Southeast Asia; spread through the Middle East
Nutrition: ~25 kcal/100g; fiber, antioxidants (nasunin in the skin)
How to buy: Firm, glossy, taut skin; heavy; springs back when pressed; green cap

Substitutes