Eggplant is a seasonal vegetable, and in winter it can be bought only in a supermarket. Therefore, as soon as the “little blue ones” - as affectionately called eggplants - appear on sale, the hostesses begin to experiment with might and main, adding them to various foods, and also use them as the main ingredient.
The peculiarity of eggplants is that they are not eaten raw, but are stewed, fried and baked with other vegetables or meat.
But not every eggplant is usable. The fact is that eggplants are good only at a young age, while the seeds are not ripe yet, and their skin has not hardened.
With age, in addition to useful microelements and vitamins in eggplants, a substance dangerous to human health begins to be produced - solanine, which in large quantities can cause poisoning. Therefore, large, overgrown specimens in food is undesirable.
Learn about the presence of solanine in eggplants is very simple. It is necessary to cut the fruit in half (or at least cut off some of the pulp) and leave it in the air for a few minutes. With a large amount of solanine pulp turns brown.
To get rid of this harmful substance, just salt the sliced eggplants and leave for 20 minutes. Released juice needs to be drained. The fruits after such processing are ready for further use.
Very tasty eggplants stuffed with vegetables, mushrooms, meat, baked in the oven.
How to prepare eggplants for stuffing
- Wash eggplants, cut the stem. Peel off. Young fruits have tender skin, so it can not be cut off.
- Cut the fruit in half lengthwise.
- Spoon gently scraping a part of the pulp, leaving the walls of the same thickness (at least 5 mm). Selected pulp can be spasserovat in oil, then combine with minced meat or use to cook another dish.
- Fill the boats with minced meat.
Subtleties in cooking stuffed eggplants
- The filling can be put both in raw eggplants, and in pre-processed ones. To get rid of the bitterness, the eggplant-free pulp is dipped for 2-3 minutes in salted boiling water. Then put them on a sieve or in a colander and leave to drain water.
- Instead of blanching, prepared eggplant with skin can be quickly fried in vegetable oil and then stuffed with minced meat.
- Mince can be used differently. This can be meat with onions and various seasonings, a mix of finely chopped vegetables or mushrooms fried with onions.
- Eggplants can be baked in the oven without stuffing with minced meat, but can be sandwiched, previously cut into thick circles. But in this case, they must first fry in butter.
- To give an appetizing look, eggplants are sprinkled with cheese on top or filled with sour cream.
Eggplants baked with minced vegetables
Ingredients:
- eggplants - 500 g;
- carrots - 200 g;
- onions - 150 g;
- sour cream - 170 g;
- chopped parsley - 1 tbsp. l .;
- tomatoes - 100 g;
- salt;
- vegetable refined oil - 35 g.
Method of preparation
- Eggplants prepared in the form of boats should be dipped in boiling water for 2 minutes. Then immediately cool in ice water, dry.
- Cook the minced meat. Finely chop the onion, save in oil. Add carrots chopped into thin strips, fry until soft. Tomatoes cut into cubes, combine with onions and carrots. Simmer everything together for 3-4 minutes. Put salt and chopped greens, remove from heat. Cool to a warm state.
- Stuff eggplant “boats” with minced meat. Place them in a greased frying pan. Cover with sour cream. Put in the oven. Bake 40 minutes at 180 degrees.
Eggplants baked with mushroom stuffing in tomato
Ingredients:
- eggplants - 500 g;
- fresh mushrooms - 250 g;
- onions - 100 g;
- tomato paste - 30 g;
- vegetable refined oil - 35 g;
- salt;
- cheese - 120 g.
Method of preparation
- Blanch the eggplants prepared in the form of boats in boiling water for 2 minutes, cool, blot with paper towel.
- Cook the mushroom stuffing. Put peeled and washed mushrooms into boiling water, salt and boil for 10 minutes. Drop in a colander. When the water is drained, chop finely. Fry in butter. Add the finely chopped onion, mix, and pass for 2-3 minutes. Put the tomato paste, salt, boil everything together. Cool to a warm state.
- Fill eggplant with mushroom. Sprinkle with grated cheese. Place them in a greased form.
- Put in the oven. Bake for half an hour at 180 degrees.
Eggplants baked with mushroom stuffing in sour cream
Ingredients:
- eggplants - 500 g;
- onions - 70 g;
- vegetable refined oil - 45 g;
- fresh mushrooms - 120 g;
- small egg - 1 pc .;
- sour cream - 140 g;
- salt;
- chopped dill.
Method of preparation
- Cut the eggplants into two halves, scrape some of the pulp. The resulting “boats” slightly fry in butter.
- Boil the mushrooms for 10 minutes. Put on a sieve, then cut into cubes.
- Chop onions finely, combine with eggplant mushrooms and pulp. Fry everything together until soft onions. Remove from heat. Put the raw egg, salt and mix well.
- Stuff eggplants with minced meat. Place in a greased form. Pour sour cream. Bake in the oven at 180 ° for about 30 minutes.
Eggplants baked with minced meat and cheese
Ingredients:
- eggplants - 500 g;
- tomatoes - 250 g;
- beef or mixed beef - 250 g;
- onions - 120 g;
- coriander - 4 g;
- cheese - 120 g;
- salt;
- garlic - 1 tooth;
- vegetable refined oil - 25 g;
- pepper.
Method of preparation
- Prepare the eggplants by cutting them along and removing the seeds. Sprinkle with salt, leave for 15 minutes. Then rinse in cold water, blot with a napkin.
- Chop onions and garlic. Cut tomatoes and eggplant pulp into cubes.
- Fry the minced meat in butter. Add onion and garlic, cook for 1-2 minutes. Put the tomato and eggplant pulp. Fry until the vegetable juice has evaporated. Sprinkle with spices. Stir. Remove from heat and cool to a warm state.
- Fill eggplants with minced meat. Place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with grated cheese.
- Bake in the oven for 35 minutes at 180 °.
Eggplants baked with minced meat, carrots and tomatoes
Ingredients:
- eggplants - 700 g;
- tomatoes - 350 g;
- onions - 100 g;
- carrots - 120 g;
- garlic - 3 cloves;
- cheese - 250 g;
- salt;
- pepper;
- vegetable refined oil - 45 g.
Method of preparation
- Eggplants cut across into circles 1 cm thick. Salt, leave for 15 minutes. Rinse in cold water, dry, laying out on a napkin.
- Fry in butter until lightly crusted. Put on a plate.
- In the remaining oil, fry the minced meat to a crumbly state. Put onion slices cut into pieces and chopped carrots. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Salt and pepper.
- Cut the tomatoes into thin circles, chop the garlic.
- Rub the cheese on a medium grater.
- In an oiled form, lay a layer of eggplants. Cover them with minced meat (take exactly half). Put minced tomatoes and garlic on mince. Sprinkle with cheese. Put an eggplant layer back on which you put the remaining minced meat, tomatoes and garlic. Sprinkle with cheese. Spread eggplants over the top. Pour the remaining cheese.
- Put in the oven. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the dish is covered with a delicious crust. Sprinkle with greens.
Mistress to note
You can make a very tasty snack from oven-baked eggplants.
To do this, cut the eggplants in thick circles, lightly salt them, leave for 10 minutes. Released juice drain. Put eggplants on a greased baking sheet, sprinkle with butter and bake for 17-20 minutes.
You can put any stuffing on these eggplants: mushrooms, browned onions, tomatoes with garlic, greens with mayonnaise, sour cream with garlic and dill. Serve such a snack in a cold or slightly warm form.
