Eggplant is one of my favourite vegetables. If you were to ask my mother, she would tell you how weird that is. Until I started keto, I point blank refused to eat this stuff even though my mom knows how to cook eggplant really well. I just really did not like the taste. Because of this, I am pretty sure that keto changes your taste buds. I've even started eating chicken livers.
Eggplant is a non-starchy vegetable that is high in Potassium (and many other things), perfect for keto. It also only contains 3g of carbs per 100g.
Meal ideas:
- Keto lasagne using thin slices of eggplant as the "pasta" layer.
- Keto crack
- Low Carb Moussaka
- Garlic "bread"
- Parmesan and pecan crusted eggplant
Lots of people have asked me how to correctly prepare eggplant before cooking it. If you just slice it and cook it will work, but it's more than likely going to be mushy and bitter. Before frying or grilling eggplant, it's a good idea to "sweat" (also called salting) it first. This allows the solanine (the chemical responsible for the bitter taste) to leach out.
My preferred method is to slice the eggplant in the size required for the meal, place it on a dish towel and sprinkle liberally with coarse salt. Place some double layered paper towel on top of that and then a second dish towel over that. Put a heavy cutting board on top. Let this sit for 30 minutes to an hour. Rinse it off under cold water and cook. Use old dish towels because they will be stained. I have two that I keep aside just for this.
Some people place the eggplant in a colander to sweat. This does make it easier to rinse off afterwards. Personal preference.
This isn't necessary but it does help the taste of eggplant in meals where it is fried or grilled.
Tags: Aubergine Dinner Eggplant Fried How_To Cooking Tips