How to Freeze Eggplant

Raw or cooked, learn how to properly freeze everyone’s favorite purple-skinned vegetable.

Eggplant is a vegetable that can be wonderful to have on hand.

If you love eggplant, you may have wondered if you’re able to freeze eggplant?

Eggplant on a designed background with a snowflake

Photo: Getty Images / Science Photo Library / brainmaster

And the answer is a resounding yes!

First is choosing the right eggplant.

Standard eggplants tend to freeze a little better than Thai or Japanese varieties.

If the stems and leaves are dried out, the eggplant is older.

Can You Freeze Raw Eggplant?

The answer here is a little complicated.

Then when thawed the eggplant will be mushy and watery.

But the eggplant doesn’t need to be fully cooked to mitigate this.

So, you’ve got the option to freeze fresh eggplant with a little extra prep.

Then rinse quickly to remove the salt, and pat dry.

Transfer to a microwave-safe bowl lined with paper towels and microwave for 5 minutes.

Transfer to a freezer bag to use as needed.

Drain off any excess water and pat dry if needed.

Then use in any eggplant recipe you love!

Check out some of our favoriteEasy Eggplant Recipes!

Fried eggplant is great in all sorts of recipes.

Stash the frozen slices in a freezer bag for future eggplant Parm sandwiches, entrees or casseroles.

Freezing eggplant is entirely possible as well as useful.