How do I cook aubergine without it soaking up all the oil?

Raw aubergine is structurally a sponge. Put it in a pan with two tablespoons of oil and it will absorb all of it in about ten seconds and then ask for more. Once the cells collapse with heat, that stops.

Step by step

1. Understand the mechanism.Aubergine flesh is a matrix of air pockets. Oil floods into them by capillary action. Once heat collapses those pockets, the structure closes and the oil is squeezed back out.
2. Roast it rather than frying it.The simplest fix. Cubes or slices tossed in a modest amount of oil, 200°C, 25 to 30 minutes. They take up what they need and no more.
3. Or microwave it first.Cubed aubergine, covered, four to five minutes on high until it has visibly slumped. Then fry it — it will use a fraction of the oil and brown properly.
4. Or griddle the slices dry.A dry griddle or hot pan, no oil at all, until the slices are marked and floppy. Brush oil on afterwards. This is the best route for a moussaka or a parmigiana.
5. Cut it thicker than you think.Thin slices collapse to nothing. Two centimetres is a good thickness for slices, and 3cm cubes for roasting.
6. Get the pan hot before it goes in.If you are frying, hot oil browns the surface quickly and limits absorption. Cool oil is simply absorbed.
7. Salt only if you want firmer texture.Modern aubergines are bred without the old bitterness, so salting for bitterness is no longer needed. Salting for thirty minutes does still draw out water and firm the flesh, which slightly reduces oil uptake.
8. Cook it until it is properly soft.Undercooked aubergine is squeaky and unpleasant. It should be completely yielding, almost creamy. This is one vegetable where more is better.

Tips

• Collapse the structure with heat before oil ever touches it. Everything else is secondary.
• Undercooked aubergine is worse than overcooked. Take it further than feels right.
• A dry griddle first, oil afterwards, is the neatest method for slices.

Common mistakes

• Adding more oil when the pan goes dry — The aubergine absorbs each addition instantly, and you end up having added five or six tablespoons for two portions. It will release most of it later, which is why fried aubergine can be so greasy.
• Taking aubergine off the heat while it is still firm — Aubergine is only good once fully soft. Firm aubergine has a squeaky, spongy texture and a raw taste that no seasoning covers.

If it doesn't work

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