Our Classic Eggplant Parmesan Recipe Is A (Worthwhile!) Labor Of love (2024)

FAQs

Why does eggplant parmesan induce labor? ›

I think it's the forces of the cheese that disrupt something in the belly.” Bogino believes it's a little bit of both: “It's probably a combination of the eggplant, the spices, and the Italian tendency to overeat.” Science, however, is pretty unconvinced.

Modern eggplant has had bitterness nearly bred out of it, so many cooks have given up the practice. Salting the slices for eggplant Parmesan is not to prevent bitter flavors, but to season the eggplant itself and, at least in my experience, keep the eggplant from sucking up too much of the olive oil from frying.

This version states that the term actually derives from the Sicilian word 'parmiciana,' the little wooden strips that form a shutter – recalling the partially overlapping arrangment of fried eggplant used in the dish.

Some speculate that spicy food (and, many add, Chinese food) might be able to start contractions because it thoroughly stimulates the digestive system. But others point out that there's really no connection between an expectant mother's gastrointestinal tract and her uterus (besides proximity, of course).

Older recipes call for salting eggplant to draw out the bitter juices, but today's eggplants are less bitter (unless very large), so salting is largely unnecessary. It will, however, help the spongy flesh absorb less oil and crisp up like a dream.

I tend to soak the slices in a bowl of water with a couple of tablespoon of salt for about 30-45 minutes. It doesn't have to do with bitterness, but I find that in doing this, the fried eggplant turns out less greasy," Jenkins says.

This recipe calls for dry store-bought breadcrumbs, but you can also use panko in a pinch. Both dried breadcrumbs and panko are fine and dry, so they become very crisp and golden when baked or fried. Fresh breadcrumbs contain more moisture, so your eggplant parmesan may end up a bit more soggy if you use these.

Hand-breaded eggplant, lightly fried and topped with marinara and melted mozzarella. Served with a side of spaghetti. Available weekdays, 11am-3pm.

The peel of an eggplant is completely edible. However, as the eggplant grows bigger and matures, the peel may become tough and bitter. People often prefer to peel larger eggplants because of this, but smaller eggplants do just fine unpeeled. It ends up being a matter of personal preference.

Two Southern Italian regions, Puglia (the heel of the boot) and Campania (home of Naples), have their own versions of Eggplant Parmigiana, as recorded in La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy. For the recipe from Puglia, the eggplant is dipped in egg, dredged in flour and fried.

How long after eating eggplant will labor start? ›

Eggplant's reputation as a possible labor kick-starter is most likely due to a famous eggplant parmesan dish at a restaurant near Atlanta, Georgia, called Scalini's, known for its "eggplant babies." According to lore, when pregnant women eat the dish, they go into labor within two days.

Eggplant contains a lot of fiber to help prevent constipation and improve the body's process of absorbing nutrients. Eating eggplant during pregnancy also helps reduce the risk of hemorrhoids during pregnancy or irritable bowel syndrome.

The lore surrounding Scalini's eggplant parmesan eventually led the restaurant to compile a wall of photographs — affectionally known as the “Baby Eggplant Club” — filled with hundreds of pictures of infants supposedly born because their mothers had eaten the eggplant parmesan within hours or days of giving birth.

Stimulating contractions of the uterus.

(Pitocin is the synthetic form of oxytocin, a hormone that the body releases during labor to help the uterus contract.) It starts a small dose, which increases until labor is progressing well. While the Pitocin is given, the fetus and uterus are closely monitored.