Yep....ugly grey-ish green and often slimy.
I loooooove eggplant sliced about 3/8 inch thick, salted, allowed to weep, rinsed and dried, rolled in flour and sauteed in a mix of oil and butter....until it's crisp on the outside and soft on the inside!
When I was a kid, I couldn't stand any "goosh" so my mother cut it thin and fried it crisp for me....and gradually when I had eaten all my crisp stuff I would go for a thicker slice....and eventually learned to love it any way....but I don't like that plastic like skin.
Linda C

The only way I've seen the regular, purple globe type eggplant look pretty once cooked is when it's done on the outdoor grill...something about cooking it with other vegetables & liquids seems to encourage the rather unappetizing color. I love it as part of a frequent part of our summer diet...grilled veggie medley...a variety of veggies, sliced into large pieces (so they don't fall into the grill :D), tossed in olive oil & herbs/spices or an Asian marinade and cooked quickly on a hot grill. You take them off just before you think they're really ready, because residual heat will keep cooking them while you slice them into more fork-manageable chunks and toss them together.

That's the nature of eggplant. For color, as well as flavor, tomato, parsley or other ingredients are usually added. There are countless ways of preparing eggplant.

OTOH, have you had baba ghanouj? That's one preparation where eggplant pretty much stands on its own, yet is attractive and delicious.

Jim

I used to make baba ghanouj (is that really the way you spell it?) a lot but the last several times I made it it had a very unpleasant harsh bitter taste. What did I do wrong?

Likely your eggplants were overripe or old, tache. In future, make sure you buy eggplants that are firm and shiny, with no soft or brown spots.

tache, you didn't do anything wrong. Eggplant is famous -- or, rather, infamous -- for being bitter at times. That's why many people often "sweat" it before cooking.

To sweat, slice the eggplant. You can peel or not first, depending on your personal preference. Put the slices in a colander, sprinking each layer with salt. (A generous amount of salt. For a large eggplant, you might use as much as 2 tablespoons by the time all was said and done.) The salt will force out the juices, which are the cause of the bitterness. So either put the colander in the sink so the juices can drain, or put a large plate underneath to catch them.

Let the salted eggplant sit for about 45 minutes. Then rinse well under cold, running water to remove the salt residue. Pat dry with paper towels, and then proceed with the recipe.

I don't know if the following information is correct, but it came from a friend who is both a scientist and a wonderful cook, so I've always followed it and never had a bad result. She told me that the 'sex' of the eggplant mattered. On the end opposite the stem, a male eggplant will have what looks like a scar. A female eggplant will have a deep indention, more like a belly button. You want to choose a 'male', because it's far less prone to be bitter.

HTH!

sm

This eggplant spread/dip from Molly O'Neill's NY NY Cookbook is my DH's #1 favorite snack food. We serve it with baked pita chips from the Syrian bakery that makes bread for most of the M.E. restaurants in our area. I usually only make one eggplant at a time and reduce the other ingredients to scale.

EGGPLANT CAVIAR makes about 5 cups

4 large eggplants
1 Tbs. kosher salt
1 cup EV olive oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Halve eggplants, lengthwise, score with a knife, and sprinkle lightly with the kosher salt. Cover with a heavy plate and weigh down the plate to press out the moisture for one hour.

Preheat the oven to 375. Oil a baking sheet.

Squeeze out any excess water from the eggplants. Place the eggplant halves, skin sides up, on the baking sheet. Bake until the meat is completely soft, 35 to 45 minutes. Set aside to cool.

When cool enough to handle, skin the eggplants. Chop the pulp and tie in a large square of dampened cheesecloth. Let hang above the sink or a bowl until most of the liquid has drained off, about 15 minutes. (Note: I sometimes just drain the eggplant mixture in a colander instead of the cheesecloth.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, garlic, mustard, salt and pepper. Add the eggplant pulp and stir to mix. Cover and refrigerate for one day before serving. Serve with breadsticks or pita chips.

I love eggplant- another way to serve is peel, Cut into wedges lenghtwise (like fat french fries) - salt method as described above to get rid of the bitterness. Triple dip - flour, egg, breadcrumbs. Fry in deep fryer or cast iron skillet, until golden. Drain, and here's the best part- Sprinkle with confectioners sugar while warm. Very delicious!!!
I am going to try to only buy male eggplants from now on!

Well, tis said that one is never too old to learn.... females have belly buttons and males have scars.... OK....

But... how can there be male fruits since all eggplants have to have been fertilized to mature into a fruit? Doesn't that make all fruits female?

Ruthanna - that is an interesting variation on Eggplant caviar. The one I make is quite different. Not sure which one may be more authentic, yours sounds very good, just very different from mine.

Eggplant caviar From Kyras Secrets of Russian Cooking

1 large eggplant
1 large onion, chopped very fine
1 small can tomato paste
1 green pepper chopped very fine
1 tsp vinegar (or slightly more)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tsp powdered sugar
salt & pepper to taste

Bake the eggplant until tender. When cool, skin it and chop very fine. Saute onion and pepper in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add tomato paste and simmer 4-5 minutes, addin the remaining oil. Add vinegar, sugar, salt, pepper and chopped eggplant. Cook very slowly over low heat for 20 minutes, adding more oil if needed. Remove from heat and put in a container in the refrigerator. Serve very cold with thin sliced black pumpernickel and unsalted butter.

One of my favorite eggplant recipes...

CAPONATA SPECIALE

2 pounds eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 8 cups)
salt
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups finely chopped celery
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup wine vinegar, mixed with 4 teaspoons sugar
3 cups drained canned Italian plum or whole-pack tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
6 large olives, pitted, slivered and well rinsed
2 tablespoons capers
4 flat anchovy fillets, well rinsed and pounded smooth
salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons pine nuts

Sprinkle the cubes of eggplant generously with salt and set them in a colander or large sieve over paper towels to drain. After about 30 minutes, pat the cubes dry with fresh paper towels and set them aside.

In a heavy 12-14-inch skillet, heat 1/4 of the olive oil. Add the celery and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes.

Stir in the onions and cook for another 8 to 10 minutes, or until the celery and onions are soft and lightly colored. With a slotted spoon, transfer them to a bowl.

Pour the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil into the skillet and over high heat, sauté the eggplant cubes in it, stirring and turning them constantly for about 8 minutes or until they are lightly browned.

Return the celery and onions to the skillet and stir in the vinegar and sugar, drained tomatoes, tomato paste, green olives, capers, anchovies, 2 teaspoons salt, and a few grindings of black pepper.

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes.

Stir in the pine nuts.

Taste the mixture and season with salt and pepper and a little extra vinegar if you like.

Transfer the caponata to a serving bowl and refrigerate it until ready to serve.

Joe

Ah, a very eloquent (and elegant) putdown, westelle. I must add, however, in my friend's defense, that she was probably dumbing down the explanation for me. So maybe I didn't get all the details right. But please let it be noted that on the other eggplant thread, someone mentioned that Julia Child recommended the same thing. 'Nuff said.

sm

Eggplant should be firm and heavy and of medium size. The skin should be smooth and shiny and a deep purple colour. Gently push with your thumb or forefinger. If the flesh gives slightly but then bounces back, it is ripe. If the indentation remains, it is overripe and the insides will be mushy. If there is no give, the eggplant was picked too early. Also make sure an eggplant isnt dry inside, knock on it with your knuckles. If you hear a hollow sound, dont buy it. The skin is edible.

The fewer seeds in an eggplant, the less bitter it tastes. Check the bottom (the end opposite the stem). There will be a greyish scar about the size of a 5 cent piece. If the scar is oval or oblong, the eggplant will be loaded with seeds. If the 'scar' is round, it will have far fewer seeds.

Gee, I don't know about boy and girl eggplant babies, but just because we humans emerge from the female, it doesn't follow that all babies are going to be girls, does it? I don't really want to delve further into this....

Thanks all. I consulted with the produce person at our supermarket and got a really wonderful looking egg plant. Serious sexing of the eggplants created a near hilarious scene but I ended up with a fine looking guy.It turned out really well and was a surprisingly nice color.
Right,Daisy, think about sea horses.

Alexa, just wanted to report that I made your eggplant caviar this week and we really enjoyed it.

Probably only the female plants flower, but can produce both boys and girls, No? Great advise about sexing them...never knew how to tell. Just figured it was like roulette.

Here's some eggplant info:

From Wikipedia

This page addresses the "male/female" eggplant controversy:

"There is long-standing controversy about male and female eggplants, which is an inaccurate approach considering the fact that fruits are the product of sex and do not have it. However, it is folk wisdom worth some attention. Eggplants have a dimple at the blossom end. The dimple can be very round or oval in shape. The round ones seem to have more seeds and tend to be less meaty, so select the oval dimpled eggplant."

But there are better ways to choose a ready-to-eat eggplant, as the articles describe. I use the judge-by-touch method and lately haven't been stuck with bitter eggplants.

I like it very much, but do find they are sometimes more time-consuming than my end result warrants!

I raised some last year and they turned out to be small but oh so good. I like them sliced thin, dipped in egg mixture and fine cracker crumbs instead of bread crumbs. To me it makes them more crunchy. I use whatever crackers I have on hand. Then fry, I use either Canola or mix Canola/Corn oil.

I have two eggplant recipes at opposite ends of the scale I think. The first, Papoutsakias, will please nearly everyone and is a good introduction to eggplant for those who are unfamiliar with it.

The second, Imam Bayaldi, is what I would consider the ultimate eggplant preparation for those who really like eggplant and like things with an ample amount of olive oil. I'm one of those. It's an exceptional dish. And vegetarian, BTW.

PAPOUTSAKIAS
-------------------------
This eggplant dish will be enjoyed by everyone. You don't need to be an eggplant afficianado to enjoy it. This is my own recipe for papoutsakias. It has been posted elsewhere.

The name is Greek for "little shoes", which describes the eggplant halves, filled with a mixture of chopped eggplant, ground meat, sauce and seasonings, then roasted. I like to roast them covered in a Weber type grill for the smoky flavor, but they are very good done in a regular oven.

3 medium eggplants
1 lb ground beef or ground lamb
1 (16 ounce) can tomato sauce
1/3 cup olive oil
4 garlic clove
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
basil
salt and pepper

Cut eggplants in half lengthwise.

Scoop out flesh of eggplants using a large spoon, leaving 1/2 inch of thickness to the shells (four halves are to be stuffed, the third eggplant is for extra flesh).

Smear four shells with olive oil and roast, flesh side down, on grill or in 400 degree F oven until lightly brown, about 10 minutes.
While the shells roast, brown the meat in a LARGE skillet, about 10 minutes.

Remove meat and set aside.
Meanwhile, chop eggplant flesh coarsely and the garlic finely.

Add olive oil to the skillet and cook the chopped eggplant and garlic until the eggplant is well done and soft, about 30 minutes.

Add all ingredients, except shells, to the skillet and cook until everything is nicely combined, about 10 minutes.

Fill the shells with the mixture.

Sprinkle with grated cheese.

Roast until bubbly and brown, about 10 minutes.

IMAM BAYALDI
-------------------------
The name translates to The Imam Fainted. Presumably he swooned upon tasting this dish. For real eggplant lovers, that would be understandable. There are other stories of its origin, but I like that one best.

This recipe is adapted from Recipezaar.

2 medium eggplants
2 medium onions, chopped
3/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3 medium tomatos, peeled and chopped

salt and pepper

Saute the onions in a little oil.

Add the garlic, tomatoes, salt, and pepper.

Cook until it comes together as a very thick stew (no liquid).

Cut the stem ends from each eggplant and cut eggplants in half lengthwise.

Make 3 lengthwise slits, almost from end to end, cutting into the flesh about 1 inch deep.

Heat 1/2 cup olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.

Add the eggplant, cut side down, and fry gently, until dark golden-brown on cut side.

Turn over and fry on skin side a couple more minutes.

Remove from oil (most of it will have been absorbed) and place on paper towels to drain for atleast 15 minutes before proceeding with recipe..

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Hold each slit apart and spoon as much of the vegetable mixture as possible into each cavity. The slits won't hold much. Don't worry.

Spread any remaining vegetable mixture on top of the eggplants.

Arrange eggplants in a baking dish just large enough to hold them.

Drizzle with the remaining oil.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until tender.

Let cool and serve at room temperature.