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deborah_sc

Eggplant ready?

Deborah-SC
11 years ago

Good morning all! I am a newbie veggie gardener & I just picked an eggplant. It's about 9 inches long but only about 2 inches in diameter. It's a black beauty. I did not thin blossoms on the plant. When I pressed the skin with my fingernail it did not bounce back & left a mark. Was it ready? (Guess I should have asked before I did it -- but unfortunately I roll like that sometimes.)

Comments (13)

  • gardenman101
    11 years ago

    Black beuties are usually wider then 2" when ready. But depending on growing stresses it could be ready at 2" wide. Was the skin shinny if so then it is ready, when the skin becomes dull, then it is over ripe (still usable though) I also believe that u can use eggplant at almost every stage and size, most people do wait til they are a bit larger though. But you should be fine. I usually harvest at any size when I have a craving for fried eggplant...lol.

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    thanks gardenman101! yes, the skin is shiny. i think i read somewhere that if you don't cull blossoms that the eggplant won't get as wide. well, if it tastes like poo, i'll know to wait!

  • digdirt2
    11 years ago

    Sounds like you may have gotten a mis-labled plant. Most likely Ichiban rather than Black Beauty. You can Google "Black Beauty eggplant' and see all kinds of pictures of what they should look like.

    Dave

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Dave - I actually have 2 each of the black beauty & Ichiban. I googled the black beauty & read on how to harvest. It's just this eggplant has been the same size for over a week. Do you thin your blossoms to get bigger fruit on the black beauty or do you "let nature take its course"?

  • gardenman101
    11 years ago

    I have never had to thin blossoms and i have gotten giant black beauty's I didnt relise from you original post that you had 2 verieties. I'd have to agree with Dave you may have gotten a missed labeled eggplant (wouldnt be the first time that thats had happen) I remember buying pepper plants marked sweet and they turrned out to be be hot. All it takes is someone looking at the plants before you and mixing up lables.

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks y'all! I'm going to roast it tonight. I'll let you know if it tastes "right".

  • gardenman101
    11 years ago

    please do, im always looking for new ways of doing eggplant. Last year I got over 150 eggplants off 5 plants, so would be nice to learn new recipies.

  • digdirt2
    11 years ago

    Black Beauty Eggplant

    Ichiban Eggplant

    ID tags are often switched at the stores. The only way you really know what you have is if you grow them from seed yourself.

    Dave

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Ding, Ding, Ding -- Dave IS the winner. LOL

    I must have mislabeled my eggplants. I thought the ones with purple in their leaves were black beauty & the ones with no purple in the leaves were ichiban. I was wrong!!!!

    To my credit, at least I didn't think my summer squash was an eggplant!!!

  • pumpkins4u
    11 years ago

    to OP, eggplant is great harvested early means less seed less bitter so you don't have to 'wait'. You don't want them to get too old. Though you probably want them to get as big as possible without getting bitter.

    Ok Gardenman101 send some of those my way. And have you tried Moussaka. It is healthier than lasagna and my family loves it including my kid who doesn't like to eat very many veggies. We also do Moussaka with zucchini when it becomes too plentiful which is they way it is done in Europe. American recipes will always say eggplant but you can also use any of the summer squashes too. The nice part is it takes me 2-5 eggplants to make it since I pick them early for flavor and grow different varieties like rosa bianca.

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Gardenman101 -- the roasted eggplant was just so-so (my fault). I cut the pieces too small & it became overdone - LOL

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    i meant to include the link for the recipe i was following -- it's below.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Oven roasted eggplant

  • Deborah-SC
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Ok -- eggplant roasting part deux: picked two ichiban, washed and peeled off alternating strips of skin - cut into 1/2 inch rounds - tossed with extra virgin olive oil & dry italian dressing mix (the kind you mix with oil in a cruet) - lined cookie sheet with tin foil & greased with olive oil -- baked in a pre-heated oven @ 550 degrees F on the next to top rack -- baked for about a total of 15/20 minutes flipping eggplant 1/2 way through. It was nicely browned on outside and creamy, creamy, creamy on the inside. SUCCESS!!

    Important to not only oil the eggplant but also the cookie sheet. Last time I tried this the eggplant stuck to the tin foil.

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