Food Talk  Discussion Forum

Hi All ,

I bought brinjal yesterday , but it is totally different , it became watery after i cook that ,m and no taste at all , could someone give me tips how to cook with the brinjal that we get in USA .... And i have one more question , do we get grated coconut in US , i saw the whole coconut in walmart , but i dnt know how grate that , Pls advice me ...
Mayuri replied. Do not cook the Brinjal. Fry Brinjal in little oil until it gets tender. And then u can use the fried Brinjal for Sambar, curry etc. kt replied. yes, there is grated coconut in the usa. but it is not sold near the fresh coconuts. it is usually found on the supermarket aisles near the baking goods, such as flour, sugar, cake mixes, chocolate chips, etc. it is usually in a plastic bag. it is usually sweetened, too. canned coconut milk can usually be found in the asian food aisle in the thai food sections.

if you have latin, asian, or indian markets near you, you may want to see their selection of coconut products, too. latin markets often carry different coconut products, including cubes of dried coconut milk that you use like boullion cubes. asian markets have different types of coconut milk, young coconut, different types of grated, etc.

in the usa, coconut is used almost exclusively for desserts and candies. this is why it is presweetened at the regular supermarkets. it is next to unknown to mixing it with savory foods. this could be because they only grow in south florida and hawaii in the usa, and when a person got one, it was exotic, expensive, unusual, etc.

travel to south america, though, where coconuts are more than abundant, and they are used in both savory and sweet foods, making incredible 'cream' sauces for stews, stroganoffs, etc.

somebody recently asked about cocoa powder, too. now, i am allergic to chocolate, so i am not the best to respond for taste, etc. but i do know the names of a few that are supposed to be good:

1. hershey's is the main name in chocolate in the usa. has been in business over 100 yrs. that would probably be the american standard.

2. ghiradelli is from san francisco and has been going for at least 100 years, too. not as widespread as hershey's...more of a niche market. might be more expensive, too. i've heard some say it has a 'richer' taste, but i have no experience in it.

3. bakers. the name of a brand, not just for people who bake.

4. german's. the last name of the family, not the country. unsweetened chocolate, but i think they do cocoa powder, too.

good luck on all accounts,
kevin