Japan's favorite aphorism about eggplants
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"Japan’s autumn eggplant: Too delicious for your daughter-in-law"
By Elizabeth Andoh, The Japan Times (Sep 1, 2024)
Cooked properly, nothing beats an eggplant for succulence, softness, and savoriness. It's so good that you almost want to keep it for yourself.
In Japan, eggplants reach their peak of flavor during a period of time known as zansho (literally "lingering heat"), the equivalent of mid-August through late September. Such aki nasu, or autumn eggplants, are especially tasty. And, because eggplant is thought to cool the body (probably due to an unusually high concentration of minerals and phytonutrients in late-harvest fruit), dishes made with them are particularly inviting on days when heat and humidity sap the appetite.
Most varieties of Japanese eggplants boast tender, deeply purple skins and juicy, pale yellow-green flesh. They are all nearly seedless, and some varieties, such as Kamo nasu grown around Kyoto, are bulbous and squat. Others, such as Hakata nasu grown in Kyushu, are long and slender. All true Japanese varieties have a dark calyx, not a green one. Most people think of eggplant and other members of the nightshade family such as tomatoes as vegetables because of their savory taste — botanically, however, they are fruit.
The Japanese have a fondness for kotowaza (aphorisms) that embody tidbits of folk wisdom. Many kotowaza use food as a seasonal point of reference, and the best-known kotowaza concerning eggplants goes: “Aki nasu wa yome ni kuwasu na” ("Never serve autumn eggplants to a daughter-in-law”).
Most Japanese will tell you that the phrase means autumn eggplants are so delicious that young brides don’t deserve them. If you are unfamiliar with Japanese humor regarding in-laws, you should know that jokes are usually directed at the husband’s mother, instead of to the detriment of the wife’s mother, which is the typical pattern in many Western countries. In Japan, daytime talk show hosts will commiserate with young brides who are bridled with spiteful shūtome (mothers-in-law).
Here, aki nasu are such a prize that it’s mother-in-laws being reminded that their delicate flavors should be saved and savored all for themselves.
Interestingly, there is another lesser-known interpretation of the same kotowaza claiming concern for the bride’s health and the family’s future progeny. Since Japanese eggplants are nearly seedless, there is the (symbolic) suggestion that the bride who indulges in the pleasures of eggplant might become “without seed” — in other words, childless. And even should the marriage be fruitful, eggplant’s cooling effect on bodily functions was thought to raise the odds of miscarriage. In this interpretation, a thoughtful but worried mother-in-law who avoids serving autumn eggplants to her daughter-in-law does so not out of greed but concern.
One of my favorite ways to prepare eggplant is stuffed with a miso-seasoned ground chicken mixture. The classic version of this dish is called “nasu no hasami age,” and the eggplant is traditionally deep-fried, though many home cooks (myself included) prefer to avoid this, especially in hot weather. Therefore, my rendition calls for a pan-seared adaptation.
A final note: After you’ve bought your eggplant from your local market, don’t toss them directly into the refrigerator, which will often cause the flesh to go spongy and flabby. Ideally, eggplants should be stored, wrapped in newspaper or paper towels, at room temperature in a cool location until you’re ready to cook.
[recipe and cooking method portion of article is omitted]
Selected readings
- "aborigine / aubergine" (12/2/08)
- "Ajvar and caviar" (8/1/22)
[Thanks to Don Keyser]
Philip Taylor said,
September 1, 2024 @ 9:27 am
"One of my favorite ways to prepare eggplant is stuffed with a miso-seasoned ground chicken mixture" — my (Vietnamese) wife's favourite way to prepare aubergine ("eggplant") is to blend it with minced pork seasoned with chilli-bean paste and soya sauce. And to be honest, that is almost the only way I will eat aubergine !
cM said,
September 1, 2024 @ 10:00 am
"…botanically, however, they are fruit" – this is one of those slightly annoying useless statements that shows up often about so many different plants.
Yes, it's true that botanically, eggplants are not vegetables. But neither is anything else, because botanically, vegetables don't exist. "Vegetable" is simply not a botanical category, but a cultural one.
Gene Anderson said,
September 1, 2024 @ 11:06 am
And speaking of folk eggplants–a fantastically good Turkish salad consists of cooked and cooled eggplant, hollowed out and served with its flesh chopped up and mixed with chopped tomatoes, herbs, pine nuts, olive oil, salt, pepper, and whatever seasoning you want. This is known as "the Imam swooned," because a) the Imam swooned with delight when he tasted it, or b) he swooned with sorrow when he couldn't get it, or c) he swooned with horror at the expense of it. C) is unlikely because it isn't very expensive.
Jonathan Smith said,
September 1, 2024 @ 1:40 pm
"jokes are usually directed at the husband’s mother, instead of to the detriment of the wife’s mother, which is the typical pattern in many Western countries"
No idea what this means re: "Western countries". The trope (and yes also the lived reality, only somewhat improved in the modern age) of the long-suffering daughter-in-law~wife (note the standard polysemy here) and her tyrannical mother-in-law i.e. husband's mother is not only pan-East-Asian but broad-strokes parallel to the "Western" situation.
So common sense tells us the saying means that one is to maintain wife/daughter-in-law in a state of relative deprivation such that she learns her place, of course.
Peter Taylor said,
September 1, 2024 @ 4:18 pm
@cM, it's worse than that. The "members of the nightshade family" are species, and while some of them are associated with their fruit others are associated with their tubers (e.g. potato) or their leaves (e.g. tobacco).
Philip Taylor said,
September 2, 2024 @ 2:37 am
Are the "members of the nightshade family" not genera rather than species, Peter ?
Peter Taylor said,
September 2, 2024 @ 4:23 am
You raise a fair point, Philip. I would say that taxonomic membership is transitive, so that both the genera and the species that comprise them are members of the family.
Philip Taylor said,
September 2, 2024 @ 1:07 pm
I cannot (and will not) argue with that, Peter.
Benjamin E. Orsatti said,
September 3, 2024 @ 7:23 am
Truly, 'twas two Taylors that tittered and twittered to topics taxonomical… 'till Tuesday?
Benjamin E. Orsatti said,
September 3, 2024 @ 8:58 am
Too transitive? Tsk.
Tom said,
September 5, 2024 @ 6:39 pm
The best Japanese eggplant recipe in summer is "mizu-nasu," a kind of eggplant pickle. Addictive. The best winter recipe is "nasu-dengaku," a grilled eggplant slathered in sweet miso paste.