I’ve grown a few eggplant varieties and I’ve never seen this. The seeds are much larger from my experience. Perhaps these are under developed seeds, I’m not sure. I’d say provide more images. Like has been mentioned get a single slice cross cut. I’d wager that it’s possibly a reaction to the knife. So try and rip a few pieces and see if it’s still there. I doubt it’s mold or any sort of fungal infection. Unless the outside looks weird.
Thanks for the insight. I’ll ask her to slice it that way next time, but from your experience, do all seeds of an eggplant come in the same size, or do some develop before the others? There were bigger seeds in the eggplant, so she thinks those are the seeds and these are something else.
All the seeds I’ve seen are bigger. In the varieties I’ve grown they are white if I recall correctly. The two varieties I’ve grown are Black Beauty and Ichiban, if that helps.
If in doubt chuck it
I’ve never seen this on any eggplant I’ve cut in my life
Also that eggplant looks old and not fresh
That looks like the kind of mold that gives you headaches if ingested into your digestive system
I’ve also just had a look on google
No eggplant looks like your image and looks more like I expect to see based on all the eggplants I’ve cut
I doubt the other answers not saying its mold
This is a flavor blasted eggplant
Definitely death.
Well, yours is the only answer she agrees with, so I guess it’s right.
I see these on eggplants a lot. IDK what they are.
I have a ton of theories. Do you happen to have a laser pointer you don’t care about?
If so, take off the lense, put it in a hair pin, tape that to your phone’s camera’s lens, and take a macro image.
Post that image, and you’ll get way better feedback.
If I remember correctly, you can also use a water drop in the lens and it will amplify the image.
Power to you if you’re willing to do that. I’d be a little worried about my lens/ electronics.
Nice. I actually have a pocket microscope. I should have thought of that. It would have to wait until the next time she freaks out like this.
That’s toxic and you shouldn’t eat it! Specifically because it’s eggplant.
My wife hates eggplant with a passion. I don’t get it.
She’s correct, because it tastes and chews like carpet padding. And before you say “you’re cooking it wrong”, I’ve had it at restaurants, and cooked it myself several times. Awful stuff.
Pretty sure eggplants are from the nightshade family for anyone who doesn’t know
Nightshade family flowers are poisonous
So are tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers.
That’s correct, you’re taunting death when you eat it. It tries to warn you with its disgusting taste and texture.
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A Google Image search for eggplant seeds shows something much larger than what OP’s talking about.
Here are some places where people had the same question, and the answer was seeds every time:
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/w2ccxb/what_are_these_tiny_black_seeds_in_my_eggplant/
https://www.reddit.com/r/vegetablegardening/comments/16m4til/eggplant_dots/
https://www.reddit.com/r/foodsafety/comments/1iv7qb4/eggplant_had_dark_spotsseeds_safe_to_eat/
Note that random reddits are not a source of reliable information. However, OP is certainly not the first to notice such spots, and it is not marked anywhere as dangerous. It is also notably absent on any sites about checking whether your eggplant has gone bad.
Nice thank you for this.
Probably didn’t develop fully yet. Eggplants are picked before they fully ripen. They could also be aborted seeds that will never grow too.
This. Eggplant seeds are growing. Not fully developed yet.
Huh, TIL. Thanks!
Nope, just had a look on Google and they don’t look like eggplant seeds
This looks like black mold to me
eating eggplant for years, it is fine - a general rule of thumb - if if looks good, smells good, doesnt seem wierd to touch, and does not taste bad, it is probably good (does not apply to wild berries/leaves/mushrooms).
That might be black mold
if it is fresh then most likely not, i have had very fresh eggplants (3-4 hrs after getting from field) and it had spots. I am not sure, but i think it is fine, but if it is old, then your hypothesis can not be ruled out easily
That eggplant doesn’t look fresh to me either, it looks old
Those are tarantula eggs 😜
That’s just how eggplant looks. Source: ex-vegan chef
ex-chef
Congratulations!
Thanks lol
They could still be a chef but no longer a vegan.
They could’ve never been νеɡаո in the first place if it was just a job
That’s how I interpreted it, yeah.
Or still a vegan just not a chef that cooks vegan food.
I’m not either anymore, still vegetarian tho
Tell me the secret to buffalo flavoring for fried tofu! I’ve got the crisp coating down pretty well using either potato or corn starch but I’m missing some sort of almost smoky-peppery flavoring that is so textbook of, say, Tyson chicken strips or something. I feel I’ve stumbled across it once or twice but never actually isolated the spice.
Obviously I’ve dumped tons of garlic, onion powder, black pepper, cayenne powder, and no amount of frank’s does the trick lol.
Second to that I’m trying to remake an Americanized Korean Hot sauce I had before that is definitely one part frank’s and I think gochugang but again, missing something else.
Liquid smoke? Start with ml amounts.
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Thanks, I’ll definitely be trying liquid smoke next! I really should start messing around with curry seasoning more. I might also try to find aged cayenne pepper to see if that makes any difference, too.
I’m no chef but… smoked paprika? Sounds like it could fit the bill, maybe.
Good suggestion! I did try that but unfortunately it didn’t seem to be it. Unless I just didn’t put enough in.
I think I stumbled across it somehow with air frying pickled jalapeños alongside the tofu but couldn’t replicate it. Not sure if it had to do with the vinegar or crisped/burnt jalapeño, etc.
This doesn’t look like seeds to me, but it’s also super hard to see what the eggplant tissue is like. If you didn’t mention eggplant, I would never guess what you’re holding is an eggplant. A classic cross section of the whole thing would be more useful to identify what’s going on.
Next time if you can just cut the eggplant in half, either along its length or across, and take a photo
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Those are definitely, 100% the seeds.
They’re water carrying vessels which oxidized when cut, like an apple turning brown.
The perspective doesnt make it look like there is a cut there, but the image is just not the best.
I mean, if it was still intact we wouldn’t be able to see the inside. Or am I not getting something? (No offense, I’m often not sure if I’m stupid :D)
The surface to the right has been cut, but the surface to the front (which has the dots), looks like it has been broken apart from the rest of the plant by force not cut with a knife. So why are these black dots only in that small area and not everywhere on the front facing surface? Something about the area i marked is different from the rest.
Aaah, I assumed it makes no difference whether it was broken or cut. A bit like apples that turn brown over time of you don’t pour lemon juice on it.
If it “breaks” it might not actually sever the strands of the material, and behave more like wood splitting along its length. Also if it was oxidation then the whole cut surface on the right should be completely black.
Those are 170% maybe the seeds or not. Probably either or
