Description
Dehydrated Eggplant is sliced or diced eggplant (Solanum melongena) dried to a shelf-stable moisture level, preserving the vegetable's mild, slightly earthy flavor and dietary fiber content while reducing weight by approximately 90 percent.
Production starts with fresh eggplant that is washed, peeled (optionally), and cut to the requested size. The pieces are then blanched to inactivate browning enzymes and dried by hot-air tunnel drying at 55 to 65 °C, or by freeze drying for premium nutritional applications.
The reduced weight and shelf-stable moisture level make dehydrated eggplant substantially more economical to transport and store than fresh produce. Rehydration in cooking applications restores a texture suitable for soups, stews, and composite food products.
We supply food-grade Dehydrated Eggplant from manufacturers in China holding ISO, HACCP, BRC, Halal, Kosher and other certifications relevant to the product and production.
Common market grades include 5 by 5 mm dice, 10 by 10 mm dice, sliced rings, flakes, and fine powder. Custom cut sizes are available per buyer specification. Bulk and reduced-MOQ shipments. Batch-level COA covering moisture, rehydration ratio, microbiology, and heavy metals.
Introduction
Eggplant is native to the Indian subcontinent and was carried west across the Middle East and the Mediterranean by Arab traders in the medieval period. It is now a major commercial vegetable in China, India, Egypt, Turkey, and Iran, with China the largest producer globally.
Commercial dehydration of eggplant is more technically demanding than for many other vegetables because of the high water content (approximately 92 percent fresh weight) and the tendency of cut surfaces to brown rapidly through enzymatic oxidation. A blanching step is essential before drying to inactivate polyphenol oxidase and stabilize the finished product's color and flavor.
Two technologies dominate. Hot-air tunnel drying is the lower-cost industrial standard and produces a flexible, chewy rehydrated texture suitable for cooked dishes. Freeze drying produces a crisp, light product that rehydrates quickly and retains a closer-to-fresh nutritional profile, and is used for premium ready-meal and military ration applications.
The mild flavor of dehydrated eggplant makes it a flexible carrier ingredient that takes on the flavors of the dishes it is incorporated into, which is why it appears across so many regional cuisines from Italian caponata to Sichuan yu-xiang qiezi.
Where it is used
- Ready-to-eat meals, frozen dinners, and microwaveable pouches
- Instant soups, stews, and broth formulations
- Mediterranean and Middle Eastern convenience food products including moussaka and baba ganoush mixes
- Vegetable blend mixes for foodservice and retail
- Plant-based and vegetarian meal kit ingredients
- Camping and emergency food rations
- Seasoning blends for savory snacks and crackers
Technical data
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Light brown to brown dried pieces, flakes, or powder |
| Source | Solanum melongena fresh fruit |
| Cut size | 5 by 5 mm, 10 by 10 mm, slices, flakes, or powder per order |
| Moisture | ≤ 7.0% |
| Rehydration ratio | ≥ 1:8 |
| Total ash | ≤ 12.0% |
| SO2 residue | ≤ 30 mg/kg |
| Heavy metals (as Pb) | ≤ 2.0 mg/kg |
| Pesticide residue | Meets EU and GB 2763 |
| Total plate count | ≤ 100,000 cfu/g |
| E. coli / Salmonella | Negative / Absent in 25 g |
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