Choosing and preparing aubergine

Why it drinks oil, and how to stop it

Raw aubergine flesh is full of tiny air pockets. Put it in a pan with oil and those pockets act like a sponge — oil floods in and the aubergine takes up an alarming amount within seconds. Then, as it cooks, the cell structure collapses and the pockets close, and some of the oil is squeezed back out.

The result is a vegetable that appears to need endless oil and then turns greasy. Three approaches deal with it.

Collapse the structure before the oil goes near it. Microwave, steam or dry-roast the aubergine first, and the air pockets close before they can fill. This is the single most effective trick and it is not widely known.

Use high heat and commit. A properly hot pan sears the outside quickly, so the surface sets before much oil is absorbed. Timid heat and a slow start is what produces oil-logged aubergine.

Or use no oil at all in the first stage — griddle, grill or roast the pieces dry until they soften and char, then dress them with good oil afterwards, where you can taste it.

Should you salt it?

Traditionally aubergine is salted and drained before cooking, for two stated reasons: to remove bitterness and to draw out water.

The bitterness argument is largely obsolete. Modern aubergine varieties have been bred to be far less bitter than the ones those recipes were written for, and most supermarket aubergines are not bitter at all. If yours is bitter — older, larger, seedier specimens sometimes are — salting does help.

The texture argument still stands. Salting draws water out by osmosis and partially collapses the structure, which means less water to drive off, better browning and somewhat less oil absorbed. It also seasons the flesh through rather than just the surface.

So: not essential, still useful, and worth doing when you are frying and want a good colour. Thirty minutes in a colander, then rinse briefly and pat very dry.

The varieties

Large purple

The European default. Meaty, mild, holds shape in slices. Good for grilling, moussaka, parmigiana.

Small Indian or baby aubergine

Round or oval, thin-skinned, sweeter and more intensely flavoured. Excellent stuffed or in curries where they cook whole.

Long Chinese or Japanese aubergine

Slender, pale purple, thin-skinned, very few seeds, quickest to cook and the least bitter. The best choice for stir-frying.

Graffiti or striped

Purple and white striped. Similar to the large purple, sometimes creamier.

White aubergine

Firmer, denser skin that usually wants peeling. The reason it is called an eggplant.

The dishes it is best in

• Baba ganoush and moutabal. Charred whole over a flame until the skin blackens and the inside collapses, then scooped out and beaten with tahini, lemon and garlic. The smoke is the whole dish.
• Parmigiana, sliced, fried or roasted, layered with tomato and cheese.
• Moussaka, where its silkiness carries the lamb and béchamel.
• Melanzane sott'olio and caponata, Sicilian preparations built on the fried texture and sweet-sour dressings.
• Chinese-style, with garlic sauce — long aubergine, high heat, soy, vinegar, chilli, garlic.
• Baingan bharta, the Indian smoked and mashed version.
• Roasted in halves, scored deeply, dressed with miso, tahini or pomegranate molasses. The easiest good thing to do with one.
• Not raw. Aubergine is one of the few vegetables that genuinely does not work uncooked.

Common questions