Look for a smooth, shiny eggplant. Dull skin indicates that the fruit is beyond good eating as it is turning bitter. Eggplant varieties typically retailed in the United States have a deep, rich purple-black color, which should be even with no streaking.
How can you tell if a eggplant is good?
A good eggplant will have glossy, taut skin. You’ll also want to test the texture of the flesh. When buying an eggplant, the flesh should be firm but give slightly when pressed, then bounce back. If your eggplant is soft to the touch, that’s an indication that it’s beginning to spoil.
What does good eggplant look like inside?
Answer. Eggplant flesh will have tan to brown colored spots around the seeds. If this is the color you are referring to, it is edible. If the flesh is more brown than white, the eggplant may be spoiling and should be discarded.
What does a ripe eggplant look like?
Ripe eggplants should be firm but not hard. Flesh should be white with a slight green tint (orange eggplants ripen orange/green inside). If you are unsure of your eggplant’s ripeness, cut one crosswise and check the seeds. They should be clearly visible.
What does a spoiled eggplant look like?
The skin has lost its luster and/or appears shriveled. The fleshy inside is slimy and/or brown color, including the black seeds. There are rotting spots or soft spots on or in it. It stinks or has a rotten smell.
Is eggplant OK if a little brown inside?
Is Brown Eggplant Safe to Eat? If an eggplant has brown spots or dark shading but shows no other signs of spoiling, such as softness, slime, or odor, then it’s safe to eat. It’s likely just been exposed to air and is experiencing enzymatic browning.
Is it OK to eat old eggplant?
If it’s somewhere in between, you need to decide if you’re okay with eating that eggplant. Brown flesh and seeds. While some browning around the seeds is normal in a mature eggplant, if all the flesh is browning, the veggie is probably too old to eat. Plus, it’s going to be soft too.
What should I look for when buying eggplant?
5 Things to Look for When Buying Eggplant at the Grocery Store
- It’s heavy for its size.
- The skin is vivid, smooth, and shiny.
- The stem is green.
- It feels slightly firm.
- Choose small- to medium-sized to avoid bitterness.
Is eggplant supposed to be spongy?
Discerning farmers’ market shoppers may be used to sniffing and gently squeezing produce to suss out what’s ready for the taking, but if an eggplant is squishy or its skin dimples with a little pressure, it’s past its prime. Ripe eggplants at the peak of perfection are firm, with shiny and taut skin.
Is eggplant still good if Brown outside?
But, sometimes you can cut around soft areas on an eggplant
If you see this kind of bronzed skin on your aubergine, and it isn’t too widespread, you’re fine to cut it off and eat the rest.
Why is my eggplant green inside?
An eggplant that shows a green hue is not rotten, it’s actually the contrary. What you want to see in eggplants is shades of green because that will often mean they’re ripe.
How long do eggplants last in the fridge?
5 – 7 days
To refrigerate, wrap in a paper towel and place in a reusable container or perforated plastic bag in the crisper section of your refrigerator for use within 5 – 7 days. Eggplant may also be blanched or steamed then frozen for up to six months.
Why is eggplant brown inside?
What you see: Brownish coloring inside your eggplant. What it is: Oxidation. Eat or toss: Eat! This eggplant likely had a traumatic experience (most likely cold temps; possibly it was dropped), but the brown coloring doesn’t signal that any harmful microbes have moved in.
Can you get sick from eggplant?
In most cases, people who have an eggplant allergy will experience symptoms within minutes of ingesting the fruit. Sometimes, a few hours may pass before noticeable symptoms appear. In severe cases, eggplant allergy may lead to anaphylaxis. This is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction.
Can you eat wrinkled eggplant?
Additionally, LEAFtv notes that if an eggplant’s skin is looking “withered” or “wrinkly,” it’s usually a sign that it’s heading toward spoilage. The same goes for if the eggplant itself feels “soft” or “squishy” to the touch.
Can you eat eggplant that has turned yellow?
In any event, your eggplants are edible regardless of color, though specimens that are yellow because they are overripe will not have the best taste as would an eggplant picked at the peak of ripeness.
Are the seeds in eggplant OK to eat?
Can You Eat Eggplant Seeds? Yes, eggplant seeds are edible but they can be bitter. The seeds of a fresh eggplant should be soft and barely visible and if they are, there’s no need to remove them. If seeds are brown, scoop them out with a spoon to reduce the bitterness in your recipe.
What color should my eggplant be?
There are several different colors of eggplant; the most common is the very dark purple, but some are lighter purple, striped or even yellow or white. Whatever the color, make sure the eggplant is all that color — there is no green, indicating unripeness. The skin should be shiny, too.
Should eggplant be purple or black?
Eggplant is a dark purple or brownish-purple color that resembles the color of the outer skin of European eggplants. Another name for the color eggplant is aubergine (the French, German and British English word for eggplant).
What does unripe eggplant look like?
Eggplants are actually eaten before they turn ripe. That classic, shiny, purple color is the color of an underripe fruit. When eggplants begin to ripen, their skin turns dull and their color changes to a rusty brown or yellow color, depending on the variety.
Why is my eggplant chewy?
You mentioned that once they turned out tough and chewy: then they were not cooked fully through. Vegetables are not like meat, which turn rubbery when overcooked. They turn soft rather. Watch out for the opposite as well: Eggplants when cooked for a long time may turn mushy.