Genoese small round eggplant

Genoese small round eggplant

They are very small eggplants with a diameter of even 5 cm. They are a very rare vegetable, typical of the Ligurian lands, and their peculiarity is that they are extraordinarily suitable for cooking and preservation in oil due to their compactness.

Genoese small round eggplant: How is it produced

Monvisotta, Liguria

In San Gaetan de sc-ciappe de meizann-e, we fill a pan with "half eggplants" on the day of San Gaetano (August 7). The Ligurian, Genoese eggplant is a very typical and particular vegetable of the Mediterranean region. It is a very good and sought-after product for those who love eggplants because it is delicate with an excellent firmness of the flesh. They are dark purple and particularly shiny. It is produced in the inland of Liguria on compact and clayey soils. 

Curiosity... do you know why it is called eggplant?

When this vegetable arrived from the Americas, it caused a great sensation. Indeed, its color and shape made it look very similar to mandrake, a plant whose roots were believed to have fertility and aphrodisiac properties. These purple fruits of the earth were therefore defined as unhealthy or "bad-insane" vegetables, from which the term eggplant derives.

Ingredients Genoese small round eggplant

It is composed of 92% water, 3.4% dietary fiber, 1% protein, 0.6% ash, 0.2% fat, and 2.3% sugars. The minerals include potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, calcium, manganese, sodium, and selenium.

The vitamins are: vitamin A, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, K, and vitamin J. Eggplants also contain beta-carotene. Here are the amino acids: aspartic acid and glutamic acid, alanine, arginine, cystine, glycine, phenylalanine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, proline, methionine, serine, tyrosine, tryptophan, valine, and threonine.

Nutritional values