The Amazing Aubergine

The Americans say "eggplant",  in South Africa and India it's a "brinjal", and the Brits speak of an "aubergine". Call it what you may, there is no other vegetable quite like it.

In fact, the aubergine is strictly not even a vegetable; it is actually classified as a berry and is also very closely related to the tobacco plant. It has the highest concentration of nicotine out of all edible plants (although the actual amount is negligible - 9kg of aubergines contains as much nicotine as one cigarette). Nevertheless, if you are trying to quite smoking, you now have a very good reason to go forth and consume copious amounts of aubergine!

Although it was originally cultivated in India, the aubergine has become an integral ingredient in traditional cooking styles all over the world. The Greeks use it in Moussaka, the French for Ratatouille, the Italians in Parmigiana de Melanzane, and not to mention the myriad ways it is used in Middle Eastern dishes and Asian curries.

Thanks to its versatility, the aubergine lends itself to countless cooking techniques - you can char-grill it, roast it, sear it, bake it, fry it, batter it, stuff it, smoke it...the possibilities are endless.

There are also many ways to describe the texture of an aubergine - succulent, tender, fleshy, juicy - not unlike the words that meat-eaters might use to describe a steak. Which inspired me to create a recipe for an "aubergine steak" that is sure to be a winner veggie dish for meat lovers.

Succulent and Tender: Aubergine Steak

Storecupboard Korma

As Europe's financial crisis rages on, I am experiencing a mini "post-redundancy" financial crisis of my own. Which means goodbye to everyday luxuries for the time being. 

My fridge bemoans the loss of its weekly intake of organic market veggies and locally sourced cheeses, just as my storecupboard misses the truffle oil and black garlic of days gone by...

And so I came home tonight and found myself staring into a gaping fridge and a peasant's larder. (Well, maybe not quite a peasant's larder: I think I did spot some muscovado sugar cowering in a corner in the back...)


I imagine that this is a nightly challenge for many; this coming home to an under-stocked kitchen and an over-stocked brain. It's difficult enough for most to concoct a dinner when there actually are ingredients to choose from. It's even more difficult when there is little-to-nothing on offer, and (I should think) especially so when that offering does not include meat. 

It doesn't have to be hard though. Normally there are some trusty storecupboard staples lurking around, they just need to be used differently.

I managed to excavate enough of these old faithfuls to be able to cook a hearty and satisfying meal. What transpired tasted so good, I decided even meatlovers would agree.  

And so, I present my very own...