Purchasing and Storing Aubergines

The freshest eggplants are available at local farmers' markets. Usually the fruits and vegetables have been picked the day before and offer richer flavors. Local farmers usually plant eggplant in the spring and bring them to market from mid summer to October. Commercial eggplants are available in supermarkets throughout the year.

Look for eggplants that are shiny, plump, firm, and unwrinkled, definitive signs of freshness. The fruit should feel heavy for its size, indicating good moisture content. Eggplants that have scars or bruises on the surface indicate the flesh may be bruised and discolored inside.

One indicator of freshness is the appearance of the stem or calyx. Make sure it is green and bright in color. Beware of eggplants on sale. They may be old, bruised, soft, dull in color, and wrinkled. The older eggplants tend to have a bitter, acidic taste. Press gently with the thumb on the skin of the eggplant. If it is fresh, the eggplant skin will spring back quickly.

Bert Greene in his Greene on Greens and Grains quotes his first cooking instructor who said, "that over-the-hill eggplant betrayed its age precisely in the same manner as over-the-hill debutantes: slack skin and slightly puckered posteriors!"

Though some people have claimed that male eggplants have fewer seeds and can be recognized by their roundness at the base or blossom end, the truth is that eggplants have both male and female characteristics and are self-pollinating. To avoid an overly seedy eggplant, select small and medium-size fruits rather than the giant-size.

Eggplant does not have a long shelf life. Store it in a plastic bag in the refrigerator and cook it within 3 or 4 days. Since eggplants bruise easily, they should be handled carefully.