Eggplant

Eggplant, also known as aubergine, brinjal, or baigan depending on the region, is a plant grown worldwide for its edible fruit. It belongs to the nightshade family, Solanaceae, and is closely related to the tomato, chili pepper, and potato. The fruit is usually purple and is often used as a vegetable in many different cuisines.

Unlike many fruits, eggplants can soak up oils and flavors when cooked, making them very useful in cooking. They are low in nutrients but taste good when prepared in many ways. Eggplants were first grown from a wild nightshade species in both South Asia and East Asia.

Today, eggplants are grown all over the world.

Description

The eggplant is a plant that grows best in warm places. In cooler areas, it is usually grown as a yearly plant. The plant can grow between 40 to 150 cm tall, with big leaves that are 10 to 20 cm long.

The flowers of the eggplant are white to purple. Even though we call them vegetables, eggplants are actually a type of berry. Their seeds are small, soft, and can taste a little bitter. Many eggplants are purple and egg-shaped, with white flesh that feels soft and meaty. Some types are white and longer in shape. When cut open, the flesh of an eggplant turns brown quickly when it touches air.

The eggplant has 12 chromosomes in its genes.

Etymology and regional names

The eggplant has many names in English, depending on where you live. In North American English and Australian English, it is called "eggplant" because white varieties look like eggs. In British English and Irish English, it is called "aubergine", a name that comes from Arabic.

Other names include "brinjal", used in South Asia and South African English, and "baigan" in some Caribbean areas.

History

No one knows exactly where eggplants originally came from. Some believe they are native to South Asia, while others think they came from Africa. People have been growing eggplants in southern and eastern Asia since ancient times. The oldest known writing about eggplants is from China in 59 BCE by a poet named Wang Bao.

Eggplants were brought to Europe through the Iberian Peninsula. They became popular with Muslim and Jewish communities there. Many names for the vegetable in Arabic and North African languages show that Arabs grew them in the Mediterranean area during the early Middle Ages. They arrived in Spain in the 800s. A book from 12th-century Muslim Spain by Ibn Al-Awwam described how to grow them. Records of eggplants exist from later medieval times in Spain and Italy. They were not well-known in other parts of Europe until the 1600s.

Eggplants were not mentioned in England until the 1500s. An English book from 1597 talked about a plant called the "madde or raging Apple" that grew in Egypt. Europeans later brought eggplants to the Americas.

Because eggplants are related to other plants called nightshades, people once thought they were very poisonous. The flowers and leaves can be harmful if eaten in large amounts because they contain a substance called solanine.

Eggplants have an interesting place in stories and traditions. In old Italian stories, eggplants were thought to cause madness. In 19th-century Egypt, people believed madness happened more often when eggplants were in season during the summer.

Cultivars

Eggplants come in many sizes, shapes, and colors, but they are usually purple. Some white types are called Easter white eggplants, garden eggs, Casper, or white eggplants. The most common types in Europe and North America are long and oval-shaped, about 12–25 cm (4+1⁄2–10 in) long and 6–9 cm (2+1⁄2–3+1⁄2 in) wide, with dark purple skin.

In India and other parts of Asia, eggplants have even more shapes, sizes, and colors. Some larger types can weigh up to a kilogram (2.2 pounds) and grow between the Ganges and Yamuna Rivers, while smaller ones are found in other areas. Colors range from white to yellow or green, and some even change color from white at the stem to bright pink, deep purple, or black. Green or purple eggplants with white stripes also exist. Chinese eggplants are often shaped like a narrow, slightly drooping cucumber, and Asian eggplants from Japan have their own special shapes.

Some popular types include:

• Oval or long oval-shaped and black-skinned types like 'Harris Special Hibush', 'Burpee Hybrid', 'Bringal Bloom', 'Black Magic', 'Classic', 'Dusky', and 'Black Beauty'.
• Slim types in purple-black skin like 'Little Fingers', 'Ichiban', 'Pingtung Long', and 'Tycoon'.
  • In green skin, there are 'Louisiana Long Green' and 'Thai (Long) Green'.
  • In white skin, there is 'Dourga'.
• Traditional, white-skinned, egg-shaped types like 'Casper' and 'Easter Egg'.
• Types with two colors, like 'Rosa Bianca', 'Violetta di Firenze', 'Bianca Sfumata di Rosa', and 'Prosperosa'.
• Types with stripes, like 'Listada de Gandia' and 'Udumalapet'.
• In parts of India, small types called baigan are popular.

Varieties

• S. m. var. esculentum – the common eggplant, including white varieties, with many types.
• S. m. var. depressum – a smaller eggplant.
• S. m. var. serpentium – a snake-shaped eggplant.

Genetically engineered eggplant

Bt brinjal is a special type of eggplant that has a gene from a soil bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis. This helps the plant resist certain insects, such as the brinjal fruit and shoot borer and fruit borer.

In 2010, India stopped growing Bt brinjal after protests. However, Bangladesh approved it for growing in 2013.

Uses

Raw eggplant can taste bitter, but cooking makes it tender and tasty. Rinsing, draining, and salting the slices before cooking can help remove the bitterness. Eggplant absorbs flavors from oils and sauces easily.

Eggplant is used in many countries' foods. Because of its texture, it is sometimes used like meat in vegetarian meals. The flesh is smooth, and the small seeds are safe to eat, so they do not need to be removed. The skin is also safe to eat and does not need to be peeled. But the green part on top, called the calyx, should be removed before cooking.

Eggplant can be cooked in many ways, such as steaming, stir-frying, or roasting. It is often mashed into sauces or stuffed. It is sometimes cooked with oil, but not always.

Culinary

Korean and Japanese eggplants are usually thin-skinned.

In Chinese cuisine, eggplants are called qiézi. They are often deep-fried in dishes like yúxiāng-qiézi ("fish fragrance eggplant") or di sān xiān ("three earthen treasures"). In Yunnan cuisine, especially among the Dai people, eggplants are barbecued or roasted, then split and eaten with garlic, chili, oil, and coriander.

In Japanese cuisine, eggplants are called nasu or nasubi. One example is hasamiyaki, where eggplant slices are grilled and filled with meat. Eggplant also appears in Japanese sayings.

In Korean cuisine, eggplants are called gaji. They are steamed, stir-fried, or pan-fried as side dishes, such as namul, bokkeum, and jeon.

In the Philippines, eggplants are called talong. They are used in stews and soups, like pinakbet. A popular dish is tortang talong, an omelette made from grilled eggplant mixed with beaten eggs and pan-fried. Eggplant can also be grilled and eaten as a salad called ensaladang talong.

Eggplant is widely used in India, for example in sambar, dalma, chutney, curry, and achaar. It is often called the "king of vegetables" because it is used in many foods. Roasted and mashed eggplant mixed with onions and spices makes the dish baingan bharta.

Eggplant is often stewed, as in the French ratatouille, or deep-fried as in the Italian parmigiana di melanzane, the Turkish karnıyarık, and moussaka. In Iranian cuisine, eggplant is blended with whey as kashk e bademjan or tomatoes as mirza ghassemi.

In the Eastern Mediterranean, eggplant is prepared as dolma, stuffed with meat or rice and then baked. In Georgia, eggplant is fried and stuffed with walnut paste to make nigvziani badrijani.

In Iran, eggplant can be used in appetizers and main courses. It can also be pickled. The best eggplant in Iranian food is long, straight, firm, and black. Unlike in other places, it is cooked peeled and seasoned with cinnamon or turmeric.

Eggplant has been used in Iran for a long time. People there sometimes preserve eggplants for winter by drying or oiling them.

Nutrition

Raw eggplant is mostly water. It has a little carbohydrates, a tiny bit of protein, and almost no fat. It has some essential nutrients, but only manganese is found in a noticeable amount. The nutrients can change a little depending on the season, where it is grown, and its type.

Cultivation and pests

Eggplants grow well in tropical and subtropical climates. In temperate areas, plant them after the last frost. They love hot weather and won't grow in cold or dry places. Seeds are planted about eight to 10 weeks before the first frost-free day.

Plants need space—about 45 to 60 cm between each one and 60 to 90 cm between rows. Mulching helps keep the soil moist and stop weeds. Giving the plants some shade during the hottest part of the day also helps. Flowers can sometimes pollinate themselves or need help from other plants.

Eggplants share problems with plants like tomatoes and potatoes. It's best not to plant them where these plants grew before. Because eggplants can attract pests like whiteflies, they're sometimes grown with chili pepper plants to help catch the pests. Wait four years before planting eggplants in the same spot again.

Common pests in North America include potato beetles, flea beetles, aphids, whiteflies, and spider mites. Keeping the area clean and rotating crops each year helps prevent diseases, especially a serious one called Verticillium.

A pest called the potato tuber moth likes to feed on eggplants. These moths lay eggs on the leaves, and the babies eat the leaves. Some diseases in South Asia, caused by Phytoplasmas, make the plants' leaves very small. These diseases are spread by a type of leafhopper called Hishimonus phycitis.

Production

In 2023, the world grew 61 million tonnes of eggplants. China grew the most, making up 64% of all eggplants. India grew 21% of them.

Chemistry

The purple color of some eggplant skins comes from a plant material called anthocyanin. When eggplant flesh turns brown, it is because natural materials inside it, like chlorogenic acid, react with air. This process is called oxidation.

Allergies

Some people might feel itchy or have a mild headache or stomach upset after eating or touching eggplant. This can happen because eggplant can cause allergic reactions in some people.

People who often have allergies might react to eggplant. Cooking the eggplant well might help prevent some reactions.

Taxonomy

The eggplant has had many different names in science. You might see old names like S. ovigerum and S. trongum in books. Other names such as Melongena ovata and Solanum album were used but are no longer correct.

Scientists have named many types and groups of eggplants. Most of these names are for different groups of eggplants, not true subspecies. Sometimes, plants that look like eggplants were also called eggplants, but they are actually different plants.

Culture

Vegetable orchestras, like the London Vegetable Orchestra, use vegetables to make music. They use zucchini as trumpets, butternut squash as trombones, pumpkin as drums, and eggplant as castanets. Other vegetables played include carrots, bell peppers, potatoes, and parsnips.

In Jainism, people do not eat eggplant, also called brinjal in some places. This is because of the religion's strong belief in nonviolence.