Oviedo, FL Zone 10A: This is my on-going documentary of the different long eggplant varieties I am growing and testing out each year until I find my four top favorite varieties to grow every year. This documentary covers the followings topics:

• How I Set Up the Raised Bed for Growing Eggplants
• Long Eggplant Varieties Tested and My Taste Review
• Culinary Uses of Long Eggplants
• Recipes
• General Information & Sources

How I Set Up the Raised Bed for Eggplants

Does anyone have problems with moles tunneling underground? I have to put landscaping fabric on the bottom before and now trying the galvanized chicken wire.

4/18/24: I finally got my raised bed #3 installed and filled up. This raised bed gets the most sun light out of the three I installed so far. It’s going to be reserved for my four eggplant varieties with some companion plants this summer.

I wanted the fillers to decompose quickly so I used the veggie scraps and the uprooted bolting celtuce and tong ho plants mixed with fine pine mulch for 1/2 of the box which is the bottom 6 inches. Then I filled up the rest with my DIY potting mix.

Companion plants for eggplants to repel pests and increase yield I am going to try growing with includes bush beans, oregano, and peppermint or spearmint.

Long Eggplants (LE) to be tested: I am planning on my next four eggplant varieties to test in my garden.

Long Eggplant (LE) Varieties Tested

1. Astrakom Russian LE – Dislike
2. Honnagu Nasu Japanese LE – Dislike
3. Orient Express F1 LE – Okay
4. Millionaire Purple F1 Japanese LE – Like
5. Ichiban LE – Favorite

Reviews:

Astrakom Russian LE: Dislike – Seeds Bakers Creek. Astrakom is a a Russian heirloom eggplant. I took out the Astrakom Russian because the fruits are small for my preference. It’s not that tender compared to Chinese long eggplant varieties.

Honnagu Nasu Japanese LE: Out of the four varieties tested this summer, Honnagu has the highest fruit production but has the worst taste and for an eggplant. When I stir fry it, Honnagu has a chewy plain texture. Not sweet at all. So I yanked the plant out.

Orient Express F1 LE: I purchased seeds from Urban Farmer. This variety produces decent long eggplant size. TBD

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Millionaire Purple F1 LE: Like – I purchased seeds from Pan Asia Heirloom on Etsy. It’s a Japanese hybrid.

Ichiban LE – This is a Japanese hybrid.long eggplant that’s available from Bonnie Plants. I planted one seedling and it produced about two dozen long eggplants about 12 inches long. The flesh is tender in stir fry. Ichiban tested in summer 2023.

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Culinary Uses:

Long eggplants are great in Asian stir fry. My favorite two versions are stir fry long eggplants with Malaysian sambal sauce and stir fry Chinese-style eggplants with chili garlic sauce. I also love eating fried shrimp paste, which is a common dim sum item at the Chinese dim sum restaurants. For Vietnamese cuisines, long eggplants are often used to stir fry with pork belly. There is also an authentic traditional southern fish noodle soup that calls for long eggplants.

For my recipes, search for eggplants in my blog site and you will see my documented recipes with eggplants. Happy cooking and eating! 🤤