Disgorge [dis GAWRJ] v. To expel water or other juices from a vegetable by adding salt over time.
When we talked about how to get rid of the unpleasant bitterness in our roasted eggplant, we discovered that there is a specific term for this: disgorge, or degorge. If you sprinkle an eggplant or other vegetable with a little salt and let it sit, it will force the water and juices to ooze out.
This term is also applied to snails. Before snails can be eaten they need a salt bath to make them expel the inedible impurities in their systems. Check out blogger Matt's foray into snail wrangling for an example!
Related Links
• Why Is My Eggplant So Bitter?
• Virtual CSA Box: Eggplant
Huh. "Disgorge" immediately conjures up images of ipecac and food poisoning in my mind, but whaddaya know...
view Jim of ChewOnThat's profile
Yep, agree - its a horrible word! Sounds so gory.
view tin_angel's profile
Okay, I understand how salt attracts water, and that it makes eggplant less bitter... but then I'm very confused about why soaking a turkey in brine makes it much more moist, not less! Probably a silly question, but can anyone enlighten me? (I've actually wondered about this a fair amount.)
view Sea's profile