Eggplant

Eggplant

Eggplant (Solanum melongena) is a species of nightshade commonly known in British English as aubergine and also known as melongene, garden egg, orguinea squash. It is known in South Asia, Southeast Asia and South Africa asbrinjal. It bears a fruit of the same name (commonly either "eggplant" in American and Australian English or "aubergine" in British English) that is widely used in cooking, most notably as an important ingredient in dishes such as moussaka andratatouille. As a member of the genus Solanum, it is related to both the tomato and the potato. It was originally domesticated in India and Bangladesh from the wild nightshade, the thorn or bitter apple, S. incanum. Nutritionally, eggplant is low in fat, protein, and carbohydrates. It also contains relatively low amounts of most important vitamins and minerals. A 1998 study at the Institute of Biology of São Paulo State University, Brazil, found eggplant juice to significantly reduce weight, plasma cholesterol levels, and aortic cholesterol content in hypercholesterolemic rabbits.