Ran short of water somewhere during development.

And too long on vine. Shine on the skin is already dulling.

Dave

Right... Thanks! First year growing eggplants so lesson learnt! And i thought i had picked it too early cos it was so tiny!

Cool nights can also contribute to bitterness. I know you're in Switzerland and your summers are like mine, not enough heat and sun. Stressed plants and/or overmature fruit contribute to bitterness.
You can never pick eggplant too young. The smaller, the better.

Other than weather and growing conditions, some eggplants varieties tend to be biter. Oriental ones are much less bitter.
Here is a way to deal with bitter eggplants:
= Slice it as you would.
= sprinkle both sides with salt and let it sit (in a strainer or towel) The salt will bring out some water, and along with that most of the bitterness.
Alternatively, you can soak it in brine(salty water for an hour or so)
= Wipe it off with paper towel and cook it.

BTW: eggplant is too tough to be stir fried!!. It is normally pan fried or baked (@350F = 175C)

Slimy Okra:

Wow, someone actually noticed I live in Switzerland! Actually, in my part of Switzerland (Geneva area), we do get decently hot summers. In fact it hasnt rained in the last about 2 weeks and temperatures have been up to 30 degrees Celsius everyday! I would even say that if stress had been the cause of the bitterness, that it was due to the heat and me missing a day or two of watering (I do water it everyday now). I am hoping for some rain today finally!

Just went out and picked the second fruit. It is a wee bit smaller but the sheen is the same - bit dull and not as glossy as the ones in the supermarket. So either that's just the way this variety looks, or I am just completely clueless and waited too long. Possibly both!

Seysonn:

I will be traveling to Asia later this year and believe me, I will be stocking up on all the yummy oriental varieties and other veg!

Thanks all!

That's nice you're having hot weather! We've had ups and downs - 30 degrees one day and 5 degrees two days later (no kidding). And yes, I'd say the bitterness is due to water stress and overmaturity.
Just a thought - if you're having to water daily, your container is probably too small.
I find that eggplants later in the season grow bigger before losing their sheen.

You are right that the pot is probably too small but oh well, next year i will do better.

I just read somewhere that eggplants that feel hard and very firm are UNripe! If they are too matured, their flesh would sink in when you pressed them. Now im confused... so is it TOO ripe or UNripe?? In any case, it wasn't ripe.. :p

That's right, and only unripe eggplants are edible. Ripe eggplants are seedy, bitter and generally not fit for consumption. The harder and firmer they are, the better! Picking eggplants is a bit of an art too - you have to compromise on how hard and firm and shiny they are versus how big they are. Basically, it's the exact opposite of a tomato! The more mature, the worse the taste. In addition, the riper they are, the tougher the flesh is after cooking. It's all rather counterintuitive but eggplants are tricky that way.

Your eggplant was probably just about to ripen, which combined with the water stress contributed to bitterness.

This post was edited by Slimy_Okra on Wed, Jul 17, 13 at 18:47

I think the variety of eggplant might have something to do with it. I grew both ichiban and the miniature patio ones this year. The ichibans were delicious as always but the miniatures were so bitter that I intend to pull up the plant and use that space for something else. Both plants had the same soil and growing conditions.