Many online recipes, eggplant parmigiana. And closely related but not the same eggplant lasagna with eggplant slices instead of pasta.

I have never tasted bitter eggplant. Maybe I am lucky or the newer varieties lack bitterness? Possibly growing conditions have something to do with it to since I live in the upper Midwest (cooler/ wet growing conditions) and never ate eggplant until I moved here.

If the eggplant is seedy then it is past its prime.

I prepare by slicing in 1/4" or slightly thicker slices, dip in flour and let sit for a few minutes. Then dip in egg and then bread crumbs. Fry until thoroughly soft. (I cook on the built in griddle on my Wolf, not in a pan of oil.)

Once in a great while treat as I am gluten intolerant. Have an eggplant in the fridge that I plan on slicing and coating with olive oil and grilling to learn if I like it grilled. (Love zucchini grilled.) Maybe tomorrow as it is raining cats 'n dogs here today.

This recipe is one that everyone in my family has liked, even eggplant haters: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/14019/eggplant-croquettes/

My neighbor even thought that were was meat in them.

@nekotish, you might take a look at the following link for some ideas. Eggplant on its own doesn't do much for me, but it can be nice with some doctoring.

https://www.themediterraneandish.com/?s=eggplant 

Is this the big eggplant or the Japanese type? I grow the smaller Japanese type and find you don't have to salt them to bring out the bitterness.

With my smaller ones, I will sprinkle with herbs and a bit of oil and throw on the grill along with zucchini, both sliced 1/4-1/2". Or do a stove top ratatoulie with E P, Zuk, some onion, garlic, tomato.

For something like EP Parm, I do them in the air fryer (after salting the big slices, not needed for the smaller) Egg, panko, a little pam, air fry til crispy, then add your sauce and cheese and air fry til the cheese melts.

My BIG reason for eating eggplant is : it's low in calories, high in fiber and "not" meat. I agree with the tips given in previous posts for cooking it...

Jeb your recipe sounds delicious, but I am concerned that it might be unsafe to leave garlic and olive oil and eggplant at room temp. without a brine.
Here is one article, but there are many about the dangers = botulism: https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/stinking_facts_about_garlic

Google moussaka recipes, too. At the end of summer with his garden harvests, my father used to do an eggplant parmesan marathon, to freeze for winter..

Moussaka is a favourite in this house. Grilled and used instead of butter on bread then topped for a type of italian tapas, breadcrumbed and fried for a crunchy delight, in ratatouille, Today aubergines aren't bitter so salting is unnecessary. At least over here.

"-----but my past experience with eggplant brings to mind, bitter, seedy and slimey.---"

Grow your own. There are many varieties which are not.

dcarch

I love eggplant!! I make eggplant parm pretty frequently, as well as a grilled variation that includes fresh mozzerlla but no tomato sauce; also make rattatouille a good bit, and someone here posted a really good recipe for caponata recently - I made it and brought it to a barbecue and it was a huge hit!

Hands down, caponata. It's a regular with me.

I also just love it grilled with other vegetables, and then make a grilled sandwich.

Moussaka is one of my favorites, takes some time to prepare, but so worth it! There are a number of good recipes for it online.

Also, sliced into 'steaks', breaded and fried. Try using finely crushed cornflake crumbs, delicious!

If they are the slender Japanese type, halve lengthwise and and grill. I used a George Foreman type grill. If I could get that type now, I'd probably halve them lengthwise and 'roast' them in my air fryer. I love eggplant!

Rusty

"bitter, seedy...."

Hmm. Seeds, yes, like their cousin the tomato. Bitter? I can't remember having a bitter eggplant. If purchased and cooked when fresh and relatively firm, I don't think there should be a problem.

Like tomatoes, eggplants are classified as a fruit, not a veggie.

No need to sell them. If you don't like eggplant, don't eat them.

I was never a fan of eggplant until I started growing them in my garden. I pick them, peel, slice in inch pieces and put them on paper towels. When ready to cook, I salt and pepper them, dip in egg and then panko and fry them. I personally like them just out of the fryer. SO likes with sauce and melted mozzarella. The other day for lunch, I cubed one, added onion, green pepper, mushrooms, fresh garlic and seasoning....sauteed and had for lunch. I remember years ago not liking eggplant because of their bitterness, but have not found mine to be bitter.

Lots of good ideas. These are the first homegrown eggplants that I have ever had, so my experience with bitter and seedy was obviously due to old supermarket eggplant, miles and days (weeks) from the garden. I think I will give caponata a try, as it sounds like flavours that we like. Was turned off eggplant parmigiana years ago due to them being fried (I suspect) in old fishy oil. I'll have to get over that and try again. Thanks for all the suggestions.

As mentioned in an earlier thread that touched on eggplant, I don't think there's a need to deep fry eggplant for eggplant parmigiana. For ease of preparation and to reduce water content, I find it works better if it's cooked first before putting into a baking dish with sauce and cheese.

You can roast inch thick eggplant slices (like other veggies - brush the sheetpan (or aluminum foil covering of same) with oil first and I also brush lightly with olive oil on top. You can check other sources for time. Or, you can grill them, on a stovetop grill pan as jasdip's photo shows or on an outdoor grill. They should shrivel up a bit when cooked evenly, that concentrates the flavor.

Both approaches are also a starting point for other preparations too.

I tried freezing EP Parm with a foodsaver and it was mush!

If an eggplant has seeds, it's way over ripe.

We like this grilled eggplant recipe. We rarely eat eggplant any other way. I like to use some poblano peppers instead of all bell peppers to kick it up a notch. Bam!

Grilled eggplant with peppers and feta