A Guide to Eggplant: What It Is and How to Enjoy It

Whether it's grilled, sautéed, or stewed, eggplant is the perfect canvas for incredible flavors.

Updated on July 14, 2023

Eggplant, also known as aubergine, is a fruit in the nightshade family. Other edible nightshades include tomatoes, potatoes, and bell peppers. Eggplants are typically large, dark purple, kidney bean-shaped fruits with a dark green stem at one end. They usually feel light for their size and have a yielding texture.

What Does Eggplant Taste Like?

Eggplant has a mild, subtly sweet flavor that can easily pair well with bolder seasonings and sauces. It can take on a bitter bite, especially when undercooked. If you like zucchini or yellow summer squash, you'll like eggplant since their flavors are very similar. Eggplant's spongey texture means it will absorb the flavors around it. Some varieties of eggplant, like Thai eggplant, are very firm and have a green, vegetal flavor.

Even if you've never tried eggplant before, you probably know about its reputation for its texture. When undercooked, it can be spongey and reminiscent of biting into styrofoam. When overcooked or cooked improperly, it can get extremely soggy and mushy.

Popular Types of Eggplant

The most common type of eggplant is the globe eggplant. It's the standard large, dark purple variety with thick skin, lots of seeds, and a spongey texture.

Italian eggplants look like smaller versions of globes, but tend to have thinner skin and much fewer seeds. Most Italian eggplants also have a slightly sweeter flavor and a more tender, silky texture than the globe variety.

Chinese eggplants are long, thin, baton-shaped varieties. The interior is firmer than the globe and Italian eggplants with few seeds, and when cooked whole, they take on an ultra-creamy texture.

Thai eggplants are usually green and have an ultra-firm texture; sometimes, they're even eaten raw due to their crisp, crunchy texture.

Fairy tale eggplants are among the most beautiful; they usually have a purple and white striped skin and are the same shape as globe eggplants, only much smaller. They are super tender and tend to break down easily when cooked.

How to Cook Eggplant

Eggplant is incredibly versatile and can stand up to most cooking methods. However, eggplant's unique texture and flavor shine brightest when grilled, smoked, deeply roasted, and fried. Be mindful that eggplant absorbs oil readily, so to avoid your eggplant turning into a grease sponge, cook it on high heat.

close up view of eggplant parmesan in a baking dish, and a slice of eggplant parmesan on a spatula — DOTDASH MEREDITH FOOD STUDIOS

Get the recipe: Eggplant Parmesan

Regardless of the variety of eggplant, the most important step is weeping before cooking. Sprinkle the eggplant slices with salt and let sit for at least 20 minutes. You'll see beads of water starting to build up on the surface — this is the salt drawing the extra water out of the slices.

Eggplant Recipes

Even if you're new to eggplant cookery, you're probably familiar with some popular eggplant dishes. Eggplant parmigiana is a popular Italian dish made of layers of breaded and fried eggplant, mozzarella cheese, and marinara sauce.

Travel a bit northwest to France, and you'll find ratatouille, a stewy dish made from slices of eggplant, zucchini, and tomato. A common eggplant dip, baba ganoush, is made from blended, roasted eggplant mixed with tahini, garlic, and sometimes other spices all across the middle east. You'll usually find it served alongside hummus, eaten with pita, or on its own.

Where to Buy Eggplant

Eggplant is in season during the summer months, so that's the best time to buy. In most grocery stores, you'll see them pop up around May, and they usually stick around until August. Some stores may have them year-round, but off-season eggplants are nowhere near as delicious as eggplants in the peak of their season.

If you have a local produce mart or farmers market near you, you'll likely be able to find some heirloom varieties or more uncommon types like Fairytail or graffiti eggplants. You're local Asian food store like H Mart will likely have the Chinese and Thai varieties. Regardless of the type you're shopping for, look for shiny skin without wrinkles or blemishes.

How to Store Eggplant

Eggplant has a high water content which makes for a short shelf life. For the longest shelf life, store it in the crisper drawer of your fridge. There, it can usually last around 5 days, depending on how fresh it was when you bought it. Once cooked, eggplant should be eaten in under 3 days in the refrigerator.