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Grilled eggplants: avoiding using too much oil?

post #1 of 6
8/1/12 at 8:37pm
Thread Starter 

I've been grilling a lot of veggies lately, and one of them is eggplants. I slice them, rub the slices on both sides with olive oil, then S&P and grill. It's delicious but BOY how much olive oil those babies can swallow is a scary thought. 

 

Two things I started doing which help a little bit: 

1) Cut thicker slices (about 1" thick). 

2) Pour a bit of oil on ONE slice and rub to spread right away. Move on to the next slice. (if I pour oil on all slices and then start rubbing to spread, by the time I reach the second slice all the oil has been absorbed and there's nothing left to spread so I have to pour more oil)

 

What's your experience with grilling eggplants? Any tips? 

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post #2 of 6
8/2/12 at 3:36am
I just coat with olive oil and toss in a bowl with seasoning before hitting the grill. I like eggplant that's not too wet off the grill so not over doing on the oil keeps them drier

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post #3 of 6
8/2/12 at 4:41am

Try using a pastry brush to put the oil on them, french fries.  Or

 you can salt them and let them drain, which seems to break down the cell structure (this is not a scientific statement, just what it looks like to me) and squeeze them before oiling, and they'll absorb less, but then they won't taste as eggplanty.

Or you can cut them thickly and then squash them with a rolling pin or one of those meat flatteners. 

 

If you cut them more thinly, each slice will get half the oil and in the end, the same amount of eggplant will have the same amount of oil! (e.g quarter inch slices will absorb x grams of oil, half inch slices will absorb 2x grams of oil)

at least by your reasoning.  I'm not sure how deeply they absorb, though the babies do seem to be like sponges. 

"Siduri said, 'Gilgamesh, where are you roaming? You will never find the eternal life that you seek...Savour your food, make each of your days a delight, ... let music and dancing fill your house, love the child who holds you by the hand and give your wife pleasure in your embrace.'"
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post #4 of 6
8/2/12 at 7:01am

I agree,

 

Slice them , sprinkle salt on both sides, let them sit for an hour to sweat. Place a clean dry towel on top & bottom  to absorb the moisture . You can always press down on them to absorb added moisture.

Do not rinse for obvious reasons.

Brush on the olive oil and grill.

 

They also call that purging.

 

Do you make grilled eggplant sandwiches ? licklips.gif

 

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post #5 of 6
8/2/12 at 7:28am

Season the eggplant,put some rosemary and grill them on a grilling pan with a little olive oil..the best combination for me..or eggplant caviar is also good idea...
 

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post #6 of 6
8/3/12 at 11:12am
Thread Starter 

Thanks guys for all your suggestions! Last night I simply used a brush and it helped a lot. 

 

Siduri, the thicker the eggplant the less oil I use because I do NOT add as many oil as the eggplant will absorb (otherwise your reasoning would be correct), I put just enough to lightly coat the surface of the slice. So the less slices I make in one eggplant, the less oil I use. 

 

You should have seen me yesterday night with my little brush, I ended up brushing my eggplant, my zucchinis, even my pork chops... biggrin.gif

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