How to Harvest and Store Eggplant

Eggplants are delicious and nutritious veggies that are easy to cultivate at home. If you have an eggplant crop coming in, you need know exactly when to harvest them because eggplants can easily overripen. Once they’re ripe, all you have to do is clip them off the stem. As long as they are properly stored, eggplants can last for 1-2 weeks after being harvested.

1. Checking for ripeness

Begin monitoring the eggplants at 16 weeks after planting:

Eggplants can take 16-24 weeks to grow before being harvested. Eggplants can quickly turn overripe and bitter, so check for readiness every 1-2 days.

Once an eggplant ripens, it is time to harvest. If you wait a few days, it may become bitter.

Check the eggplant for smooth, shiny skin:

Inspect eggplant for smooth and shiny skin. When the eggplant is ready to harvest, its skin should be shiny and smooth. The plant’s surface should be smooth, with no creases.

The hue of eggplant varies greatly. Check to see what color it should be when ripe. It could be deep purple, white with purple stripes, or entirely white.

Press your finger into the eggplant to assess its softness:

Press your finger into the eggplant to determine its tenderness. A decent eggplant will not recover immediately. It may leave a little mark thereafter.Press it gently. If the skin springs back, it is not yet ready. If it leaves a deep imprint, it could be overripe.

Measure the eggplant’s size against your hand:

Measure the eggplant’s size against your hand. Because eggplants ripen quickly, it is ideal to select them when they are still little. When the eggplant is shiny and delicate, lift it with one hand. Choose it when it’s only slightly bigger than your hand.

2. Picking Eggplants

Put on a pair of gardening gloves:

Your hands will be shielded by gloves from the spiky cap of the eggplant. Additionally, it can shield you from cuts or nicks caused by the sharp knife or shears you’ll be using to chop the eggplant.

Using just one hand, lift the eggplant:

Using just one hand, lift the eggplant. Use the non-dominant hand to hold the eggplant. Shift it around so you may get easy access to the stem emerging from the cap. It is easier to reach the stem if you slightly raise it.

Trim the eggplant about the stem.:

Make use of pruning shears or a sharp knife. Just about 1 inch (2.5 cm) of the eggplant’s stem should remain. Make sure your knife or shears are really sharp because the stems can be very thick and strong.

Never attempt to remove the eggplant by hand by twisting or pulling. It’s possible that you will harm the veggie.

3. Storing Harvested Eggplant

Use water to rinse away any dirt:

Wash the dirt off with water. Water the eggplant gently with a stream of water. Any apparent dirt can be carefully removed with your finger. After that, pat the eggplant dry with paper towels until it dries completely.

Keep eggplants for one to two weeks at room temperature.

For one to two weeks, keep eggplants at room temperature. In your kitchen, you can store the eggplant on the counter as long as the temperature is above 50 °F (10 °C). Simply arrange the eggplants in a bowl on your table or counter.

Refrigerate eggplants for up to three days.

Put the eggplants in the fridge for a maximum of three days. Put the eggplants inside a plastic bag with holes in it or a veggie bag. Store the eggplant in a vegetable drawer with other veggies, but keep it away from fruit (such as tomatoes and apples). The eggplant may over-ripen as a result of these gasses being released.
If the humidity switch on your refrigerator’s vegetable drawers is there, set it to “high” or “vegetables.” Put your eggplants in the drawer among veggies that do well in the humidity, such peppers and spinach.
When the temperature in the refrigerator falls below 41 °F (5 °C), the eggplant will start to develop brown spots on its surface. In the event that this occurs, you must discard the eggplant.

If you wish to freeze the eggplant, cook it first.

Saute the eggplant.if you wish to freeze it, first. When raw, eggplant does not freeze well. Roast or puree your eggplant before freezing it if you wish to store it for a later time. With this procedure, it can endure up to a year

• Cut the eggplant into rounds that measure 1 inch (2.5 cm) after roasting. Adjust the oven temperature to 350 °F (177 °C) and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Before placing the rounds in the freezer, wrap them in freezer paper and store them in freezer bags.
• Use a fork to pierce the eggplant all the way through to purée it. For 30 to 45 minutes, roast it at 400 °F (204 °C) in the oven. When the eggplant is soft, take it out and cut it open. Remove the meat and transfer it to freezer bags. Stock the freezer with the bags.

When you are ready to use an eggplant, cut or slice it. Peeling, chopping, or slicing an eggplant will cause it to spoil rapidly. When you are prepared to add your eggplant to a recipe, only then chop it.

When eggplant is harvested overripe, it will be evident by cutting it open if there are a lot of brown seeds inside. It’s still edible, but the eggplant will taste extremely bitter.

Throw away eggplant as soon as it becomes mushy or brown.

Once the eggplant becomes soft or brown, throw it away. The eggplant has gone bad if the skin becomes soft, pitted, or wrinkled. It could become dark on the skin or

create pits. Once this occurs, discard the eggplant.

• After harvesting, eggplants typically don’t last more than two weeks.
• Eggplants can be added to a compost pile. To expedite the process, just be sure to cut them open.