 It is actually a berry and a member of the nightshade family. The most common eggplant in the United States is large, pear shaped, and purple with shiny patent leather-like skin. Several small, slender Japanese or Chinese varieties, white, lavender, gold, and green, are becoming increasingly available. They range in size from as large and slender as a cucumber to as small as an olive.
Health Benefits: Eggplants are mostly water, 90 percent, and therefore low in calories and other minerals, potassium excepted.
Use: Because an eggplant is sponge like in structure with many intracellular air pockets, it soaks up oil like a sponge. When cooked until the eggplant collapses, the absorbed oil is exuded back. People wishing to reduce calories and still enjoy eggplant favor baked or simmered dishes. An eggplant's fleshy, meaty texture makes it a favorite in numerous vegetarian dishes. In fact, eggplant is best when combined with other vegetables--especially strongly flavored vegetables--rather than with meat, fish, or poultry. It may be fried, stir-fried, sautéed, baked, or simmered.
Buying: The smaller varieties generally have a thinner skin, firmer texture, sweeter flavor, and few if any seeds. Male eggplants have fewer seeds than the female plants, and the seeds are often bitter, according to Sharon Tyler Herbst, author of The Food Lover's Tiptionary. The blossom end of a female plant is generally indented while that of a male is rounded. Store in a cool, not cold or hot, area.
 A variety of the Asian eggplant characterized by their long, thin shape and light purple coloring, which may become dark purple as it matures.
They have a deliciously sweet meaty flesh, tender skin, and are seedless, which makes them highly desirable for numerous recipes. They are similar to a Chinese eggplant except they are not quite as long or as light colored. Since Japanese eggplants are highly perishable, store in a refrigerator for a week or less.
 Compared to the familiar American eggplant, Chinese eggplants have thinner skins, a more delicate flavor, and not as many of the seeds that tend to make eggplants bitter.
 These are large with purple stripes. They have thin skins and a subtle flavor.
 A slightly sweet, tender fruit covered with a shiny skin that ranges in color from purple, which is the most familiar, to red, yellow, green, or white, depending on the variety.
Since this food is a member of the nightshade family, which includes the potato and tomato, it is classified as a fruit. Italian eggplant, referred to as "melanzane" are similar in shape to the American varieties, but smaller and thinner in size.
Somewhat sweeter and more delicate in flavor, the main varieties of Italian eggplants are the elongated dark purplish-black eggplant (similar to the American eggplant), the Bianca Oval (a white oval shaped fruit), and the Italian heirloom known as the Rosa Bianca. The most common purple Italian eggplant, referred to simply as "Italian" eggplant, has the pear shape with a dark purple skin covering a white meaty inner flesh. The Bianca Oval and the Rosa Bianca are round to oval in shape with a thin white outer skins that have a light purple shading. The meat of the eggplants is creamy textured and provides a mildly sweet flavor when cooked.
 'Calliope' is a stunning little oval, white and purple-streaked Indian-style eggplant. 'Calliope' does well even in cooler climates and is flavorful picked either young (2") or fully mature (3-4"). It is also spineless.
from Rebecca Wood's The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia |
