Fried Eggplant
What could be simpler than frying a single vegetable in lovely, hot olive oil.
Marcella actually says “vegetable oil” but an olive is a vegetable isn’t it?
I actually made this dish in August when I got a perfect couple of eggplants in my CSA bag. Following Marcella’s instructions for steeping them in salt was easy. I dried them on paper towels after the process:
I got the oil nice and hot using the test in the recipe of dipping one end of the eggplant slice into the oil and checking for the sizzle. I could fit 3 slices at a time into my skillet.
I almost never fry anything so I found this process very entertaining. It was beautiful to watch the white eggplant slices turn the perfect golden color. And the flavor was amazing. I have never enjoyed eggplant this much; it was so sweet and not greasy at all.
Jan, this looks beautiful and delicious!
I think possibly Marcella specifies vegetable oil as it has a higher smoke point than olive oil. Perhaps she will clarify this for us.
About the smoke point: olive oil will get as hot as you need for frying. My choice of neutral vegetable oil is based on what I am tasting. As Jan points out, fried eggplant is delightfully sweet, and it will still be sweet no matter which oil you fry it in, but olive oil makes its own separate claim for attention, which I find distracting. My love of olive oil is beyond doubt, but when I fry I generally do it with something that brings no competing flavor to the fried ingredient.